The National Lottery is one of the largest funders of the community and voluntary sector across the United Kingdom. It’s remarkable to think that next year it will be celebrating its 30th birthday. Since the very first National Lottery draw in 1994, that one pound ticket or scratch card that millions of people spend each week has funded more than 670,000 projects, raising more than £47 billion for good causes. From their Community awards to multi million pound projects these funds have changed the face of community, voluntary, heritage and sporting life in this country. While many faith based organisations still have difficulties with this fund due to its link with the lottery, or as some call it state sponsored gambling it is clear that the government will continue to use lottery money to fund the third sector.
We work with a range of organisations some of which wholeheartedly embrace lottery funding while others have reservations or simply refuse to access it. We have worked with others who have considered the implications and impact of choosing to use Lottery Funding. There is clearly a case for and a case against and we acknowledge and accept the legitimate positions of each. However it is a discussion that organisations should have and we are here to help. Our Looking at Lottery Funding is a facilitated discussion and planning exercise for organisations looking at funding generally. It helps to inform and frame the debate and ensure that whatever decision is made a groups membership and leaders have throughout it through. We use a range of resources which help to stimulate discussion and inform the decision making process.
It is a good time to reconsider Lottery Funding as there are some big changes coming and groups should be aware and prepare. There are now a range of funds and many are distributed by organisations like the National Lottery Community Fund or the National Lottery Heritage Fund. This year both these organisations will be changing the way they work. After a period of During the summer of 2023, grant giver The National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF) announced its first major overhaul of the way funding is handed out. A range of changes will see the level of grant funding rise with the Heritage Fund now offering up to £10 Million for a single project.
National Lottery Community Fund
The National Lottery Community Fund which was previously called Awards for All has also completed a new strategic plan. The NLCF’s funding strategy outlines its plans up until 2030 with a strong focus on using funding for environmental change in response to increasing concerns about climate change.
This is underpinned by a renewed set of missions focusing on improving communities, children, and young people’s lives, and the health of the nation.
There is also a fresh focus on boosting funding for small charities, including doubling the amount and length of grants they receive, a move widely called for in the charity sector.
This new approach is based on consultation carried out in 2022, which involved 18,000 interactions with communities, charities, and other stakeholders.
An overhaul to the NLCF’s funding strategy had been called for by government in 2022 in its response to a review of civil society carried out by Conservative MP Danny Kruger in 2020, which called for more local and community led distribution of funding.
Through the National Lottery more than £30m is raised each week for good causes in the UK. In 2022, the NLCF awarded more than half a billion pounds to charities and community projects.
Here we outline the main changes from this major backer of good causes and how they impact on charities.
Four key missions
Changes to funding have been announced through four key missions for the funder. These are:
- Supporting communities to come together
- To be environmentally sustainable
- Help children and young people thrive
- Enable people to live healthier lives
These are further underpinned by five key values for its funding to ensure it is inclusive, ambitious, impact focused, adaptable, and compassionate.
Improved funding for small charities
Increasing evidence is emerging of the benefits for charities of flexible and unrestricted grants available for them to spend over a longer period of time.
The NLCF has sought to address this need, particularly for small charities, as well as its mission to support communities, by increasing grants available through its National Lottery Awards for All scheme from £10,000 to £20,000.
In addition, grants through this scheme will be available for two years rather than one. These changes come into force from Autumn 2023 and increases the funder’s investment in grassroots organisations to more than £1bn until 2030.
Typically, its funding will be for between one and five years, with the NLCF’s strategy pledging “flexibility to support some projects and approaches targeting longer-term or transformational change up to ten years”.
Also £15m has been earmarked for a newly created connecting communities programme to support local organisations. This launches in 2023.
“Our new strategy will see us turbo charging our support for grassroots projects while also focusing our funding fire power on four of the big social issues facing the UK and its communities today,” says NLCF Chief Executive David Knott.
“Why? Because the money we plough into grassroots reaches the most people and mobilises the most volunteers out of all our funding, and because we’ve listened carefully to different communities and stakeholders to understand where our grants can make the biggest impact.”
Green funding prioritised
The commitment to promote environmental sustainability is being backed up through an extra £9m in grants to be available through the NLCF’s Climate Action Fund. This takes its total investment in environmental causes to £35m in 2023.
Priorities within this green pledge include reducing carbon emissions and negative environmental impacts while supporting schemes that promote positive environmental attitudes. The funder also wants to “establish equality of access to the national environment” as well as “improve the quality of natural spaces”, according to its strategy.
Extra funding is certainly needed: as of summer 2023, the Climate Action Fund has been subject to “a high number of applications”, according to the funder.
The NLCF has also promised to embed support for environmental action across all its funding as well as for specific projects to tackle climate change.
Children and Health
Supporting good causes that improve children’s lives is a key aspect of the NLCF’s new funding pledges. This include creating opportunities for children and young people “from all backgrounds” to enjoy community experiences.
Helping young people shape decisions that affect them is another priority within this pledge. In addition, the grant maker wants to ensure children and young people have access to “safe spaces to play, participate, socialise and get support”, adds the new strategy.
Its pledge to improve the health of all people includes specific priorities to reduce health inequality, increase opportunities for community participation to shape better health services and to take a preventative approach to health.
LEXXER – Here To Help
As project costs spiral and charities struggle to make ends meet it is important to prepare for any changes funders will be making. They are giving us all notice that things will be different, their priorities and the way they will score applications are set to change. Therefore all applicants must understand the changes and the reasons behind them. Then we must all re-examine the work we are doing and loom at what fits and what doesn’t. This should not mean that organisations change what they are doing or simply design projects to fit what the funder wants, but it does mean looking at how their expectations and priorities are changing and how as applicants we can respond to that. There may be new areas of work which can be explored, or a new dimension added to existing programming that will fit with funder strategies. Often the changes they make are well researched and grounded, for example a focus on environmental sustainability is something we should all consider. From private households to huge multi-national companies there is a new focus on how we can all help the environment. Charities and community organisations should be no different, they should look at how they work and where they can reduce their impact on the environment. This should be a natural and reasonable response which in turn may generate fresh ideas for projects or new priories at a community level. These ideas can then be presented to funders and add value and vitality to the wider work of the organisation.
The proposed changes will be implemented throughout 2023 and will be in place by early 2024, so now is the time to learn what they are and consider what impact what they will have and how you should respond. Our Looking at Lottery Funding will help you through this process and prepare your for the changes.
