Billions of dollars in grant money is awarded to charities all over Australia. Are you taking advantage of those you may be eligible for to boost NFP funding?

Applying for grants is a necessity for NFPs and charities. But before you fill out the application, make sure you are prepared to answer some tough questions. While you might think that your NFP is deserving of a grant, the approval of your application is not down to you. You need to be able to convince others that your charity is worthy of the funds by answering some of the following questions.

Is there an issue or problem that funding can solve?

Think long and hard about why you want the money. What is the problem you are trying to solve or the issue you are trying to work around? What will the funds be used for? Are you able to put down your need on paper to convince others that your cause is worthy of their grant money? Don’t forget the all important why attached to this question.

How can you solve the issue with extra funding?

It is all well and good telling them you have an issue, but will money actually solve the problem? Now prove it! That’s right! It is a big ask, but the grantmaker will want to know specifically how the problem will be solved. You may need to give examples of other NFPs to demonstrate your strategy clearly.

Why is their grant money necessary?

The grantmaker will need to be convinced that their money is important to your project. Can you explain to them in no uncertain terms why they money is necessary? Show them how you will set out to achieve your aims and be as clear as possible.

Once you can answer these questions, then you should be able to start tackling a grant application.

Of course, there will be other questions that you need to respond to.

These will include:

• Who are you?
• How much money do you need?
• How much will you contribute yourself?
• When will you begin?
• How long will it take?

After you have had a bit of practice, you will undoubtedly feel more confident about applying for grants. Just remember to read everything carefully and proofread your responses more than once. Then when you have completed your application, ask someone to read it on your behalf to check that everything flows and there are no errors.

Good luck!