When setting up and running equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) projects in higher education (HE) institutions, fundraising can be one of the main challenges. There are many options to explore, from internal funds to external donors such as charitable foundations, royal societies, individuals and industry. Here are some things that the SFBS team have found out during their fundraising journey:

Charitable trusts and foundations

SFBS received funding from the University of London’s charitable trust, The Convocation Trust, for stipends for summer research placements. This was identified by King’s Philanthropy & Alumni Engagement. There will likely be colleagues in your institution’s Philanthropy department who focus specifically on charitable institutions and hold relationships with many trusts. If you tell them what you are looking for, they may be able to help research possibilities and support you to make an application. Some charities have specific funding calls, or they may accept applications on a rolling basis. You will need to communicate your project activities, anticipated impact and costs. Following the success of SFBS, the team also received funding from the Buttinghill Foundation to begin a new outreach programme on digital skills.

Royal academies and societies

SFBS received seed funding from the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Diversity Impact Programme (RAEng DIP). Many royal academies and societies now have funds dedicated to EDI. Some online research should bring up what funds may be appropriate for your project. Institutions could apply for up to £100,000, so the application for the RAEng DIP was quite in-depth, requiring a detailed project plan, budget, evaluation framework, risk register and theory of change. Our application was in collaboration with three external organisations: our industry link, Siemens Healthineers, as an endorser; the AfBE, a community partner who helped us engage with schools; and EqualEngineers, who had experience in organising mentoring and EDI schemes. If working with external partners, it is imperative that you leave enough time to co-create the proposal with them and allocate sufficient funding for this purpose.

Industry

SFBS received funding from Ansys’ Black Employee Network to support networking and informative events and summer research stipends. Again, King’s Philanthropy & Alumni Engagement were instrumental in facilitating an initial meeting, and once it was clear that our goals aligned, we submitted an informal funding proposal. We have also worked with Siemens Healthineers since the inception of the project, due to existing links within the School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences. Siemens Healthineers have provided in-kind support, including industry mentoring and site visits for undergraduate students on the SFBS programme. There will likely be colleagues in your institution’s Philanthropy department who focus specifically on industry and may be able to introduce you to their existing contacts or help you to reach out to new contacts. It can take some time for conversations to progress to funding opportunities.

Internal funds

SFBS has received funding from King’s funds, such as the Race Equity and Inclusive Education Fund (REIEF) and the One King’s Impact Fund (OKIF). These opportunities were advertised through King’s newsletters, such as King’s Essentials and Faculty newsletters. King’s Academy has several funds which may be of interest to those at King’s. Other funding sources include Faculty or School/Department EDI funds. You can speak with EDI leads in your area to see what is available. One of the questions often asked on King’s funding applications is how you will ensure the sustainability of your initiative beyond the funded period.

Further tips

Whichever funding route you choose to pursue, it is important to be specific about what you will do with the funding, provide a detailed budget (don’t just put vague figures but make calculations and get quotes), think carefully about the outcomes you expect and how the activities you are planning will lead to these outcomes. Furthermore, think about the risks involved in your project and how you could mitigate these. Internal and external funds will be looking for IMPACT – what will happen as a result of your project? Who will benefit? How will this be measured? You should have a plan for how you will evaluate your project. You can seek support with this from colleagues, for example Impact leads for your Faculty or teams like the What Works Department, if you’re at King’s. There are also a plethora of resources online, such as on Transforming Access and Student Outcomes in Higher Education (TASO) or Advance HE. Ideally, you should also have evidence for the problem or challenge you are trying to address. It may be helpful to look at data dashboards in your institution or request data from your data governance team. Finally, funders may be interested in how your project could be scaled – you may want to think about the future of your project and how it could be implemented for a larger number of beneficiaries or in more departments/institutions.

Do your research to make sure the aims of SFBS or similar projects align with the organisations or institutions you want to approach. Prepare a list of companies, charitable trusts and institutions you want to approach and speak to your Philanthropy team before approaching them. They are likely to have relationships with these institutions and can provide guidance on approaching them.

Good luck with your fundraising efforts!