Futurebuilders Tender Fund almost half gone
19th May 2009
Futurebuilders Small Organisation Tender Fund almost half gone as tenth grant made
Futurebuilders England has today made its tenth grant from its new Small Organisation Tender Fund, leaving only a further £110,000 up for grabs.
The Small Organisation Tender Fund – which was officially launched on January 23 this year with an initial pot of £220,000 – provides grants of up to £15,000 to help small third sector organisations win specific public sector contracts.
The latest Fund recipient was Sutton Women’s Aid – a domestic violence charity – who received a £4,800 grant to help tender for a ‘Supporting People’ contract to provide accommodation and support for women at risk of domestic violence.
The grants, which are offered for up to 10% of a contract value, are intended to help with tendering or capacity building costs – such as advice from procurement specialists, financial expertise, and legal and bidding staff costs.
Other organisations to have received Small Organisation Tender Fund grants so far include:
- Combating Obesity, who received £6,500 to support it during the dialogue stage of a tender to become the preferred provider of weight management solutions for Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) in the north of England;
- Straight Talking Peer Education, who received £15,000 to help prepare tender submissions for the delivery of peer education services targeting young people with the aim of reducing teenage pregnancies;
- Hibbert Community Regeneration Centre, who received £14,360 to appoint procurement specialists to support the organisation in preparing tender submissions to the Learning and Skills Council to deliver community cohesion and regeneration services.
Jonathan Lewis, Chief Executive of Futurebuilders England said:
'When we launched this fund a couple of months ago we anticipated that there would be a lot of interest, and so we are thrilled that so many organisations have realised the benefit of specific tendering-related investment.
The Small Organisation Tender Fund is just one way we can help develop market power and help more third sector organisations win public sector contracts.'
For the purposes of the Small Organisation Tender Fund, a ‘small organisation’ is defined as one with an annual turnover of less than £250,000. Applicants must also have been trading for a minimum of one year.
There is a limited pot of up to £220,000 for this fund, £150,000 of which was contributed by the National Programme for Third Sector Commissioning (NPTSC). Grants are distributed on a case-by-case basis to organisations able to demonstrate that they stand a good chance of success of winning the contract.
Much of the application assessment is conducted by phone and there is no closing date for applications.
For more information about the Fund visit www.futurebuilders-england.org.uk or contact the enquiry line on 0191 261 5200 or info@futurebuilders-england.org.uk. (links open in new window).
Media enquiries
- Contacts: Shaheena Sachedina, Imogen Savage or Peter Gilheany
- Tel: 020 7403 2230
- Email: shaheena@forster.co.uk / imogen@forster.co.uk/peter@forster.co.uk
Notes to editors
About Futurebuilders England:
- Futurebuilders England is a unique £215m fund offering support and investment to help third sector organisations win contracts to deliver public services. It is funded by the Office of the Third Sector in the Cabinet Office.
- For more information visit www.futurebuilders-england.org.uk
