Importance of grants

There have been three recent stories highlighting the importance of grants:

1. The Centre for Market and Public Organisation has published an article that provides evidence to refute the notion of grant dependency. They analysed a sample of more than 5,000 grant applications made by the Community Fund (a forerunners of the Big Lottery Fund). Rather than crowd out other sources of funding grants enabled charities to thrive and grow. To read the full article visit www.bristol.ac.uk/cmpo/publications/bulletin/autumn2013?utm_source=Copy+of+Linx+298+-+3+October&utm_campaign=linx298&utm_medium=email.

2. Martin Brookes, Chief Executive of the Paul Hamlyn Foundation said in a Third Sector interview, available at www.thirdsector.co.uk/Governance/article/1212669/Interview-Martin-Brookes/?utm_source=Copy+of+Linx+298+-+3+October&utm_campaign=linx298&utm_medium=email, that "a move from grants to repayable finance creates a moral problem, because it involves helping people because you have been paid to, rather than because you ought to".

3. Nick O'Donohoe, Big Society Capital's Chief executive, told a Labour Party conference fringe meeting that social investment was not a replacement for grant funding and was intended to support entirely different types of organisations. To read the full article visit www.thirdsector.co.uk/news/login/1212992.