AMCT Development Plus
AMCT Development Plus is the new capacity building programme designed to provide support to the grassroots organisations we support with a little bit extra to help them on their journey to achieve greater impact.
What the Programme Offers
Four dedicated sessions on areas of organisational development identified through the application process
Up to £2,000 of funding for your organisation to target those areas of organisational development
So, whether you need training, technology, marketing and promotional support or professional advice we offer the additional funding needed.
Development Plus is a responsive demand-led programme that assists organisations to make the most of organisational development opportunities, while receiving financial support they might not otherwise have the funds for.
Please note as this is a demand-led programme, we will be prioritising requests from organisations that:
- Are led by and for communities
- Have not received previous funding from the AMCT trust grassroots grant (AMCT Seed Grant)
Further information on the types of support available, how to apply, and our decision-making process, is below.
AMCT Development Plus is part of Aston-Mansfield’s wider work of Investing in Health to ensure grassroots get the support they need. Find out more about Investing in Health here: www.aston-mansfield.org.uk/ffp-investing-in-health/
What support is available through Development Plus?
- Tailored advice, support, or training to give the extra help to an organisation at challenging or opportune moment.
- Key issues we know organisations need help with are evaluation, business planning, income diversification and financial management.
We have a few suppliers we have worked with before, but also fund organisations directly to work with consultants they know and trust.
- Training, networking, or learning events to which we invite groups of those we support, e.g. communications, digital skills development, financial management training, evaluation, and learning.
- Strategy and planning, public affairs, digital planning, media training, messaging, brand development, crisis communications, advocacy, and campaigns.
We want to ensure organisations we support can communicate effectively for maximum impact in their work. We will welcome a conversation with you if you have:
- Identified that your organisation requires communication support.
- A strong understanding of what your communications needs and issues are.
- A clear idea of the tangible outcomes of this support.
Consultation on:
- How to examine, develop and implement diversity, equity, and inclusion practices
- How to support the wellbeing and mental health of your staff
- Income generation and diversifying income
- HR and legal issues
- Bespoke training and opportunities for staff development
- Financial health and insolvency
- Connections to other organisations we fund or other funders where appropriate.
- Signposting to useful sector resources including free online support, advice, best practice, and peer support networks.
Application Form
Before applying for the AMCT Development Plus Fund, please read the Eligibility Checklist below to ensure you are eligible.
You can apply by clicking the button below or at: https://bit.ly/amct_fund
- To be eligible for the AMCT Development Plus Fund, your organisation must meet the following criteria:
- Have not received a previous grant from the AMCT Trust grassroots grant.
- Led by and for local communities.
- Income in the last year was £15,000 or less.
- Formally set up/constituted for five years or less or in the process of formal setup.
- Be based in or providing support to Newham residents (if you are not based in Newham a minimum of 60% of your service users must be based in Newham).
- Be able to commit to a minimum 2 development sessions.
- Have 2 or more people to sign cheques on this account.
- The AMCT Development Plus Fund will not fund the following:
- Large or established organizations for whom this grant will make a minimal difference or who can otherwise afford to pay.
- Work that does not build the skills and capacity of the organization and still leaves a skills shortage.
- Work that has already taken place.
- Groups outside of London.
- Requests for fundraising activity.
- Applications for larger capital costs (such as building work).
- Recruitment-related costs.
- Part-time or temporary staffing costs.
- Work that is already being supported with ‘beyond money’/funder plus support from another funder if it is not clear where we could add value or why the existing support is not enough.
What we don't fund through Development Plus?
Before applying for AMCT Development Plus, please consider whether your organisation has the existing resources and capacity to deliver any plans resulting from the support.
We do not fund:
- Work that doesn’t build the skills and capacity of the organisation and still leaves a skills shortage.
- Work that has already taken place.
- Work that is a core activity for most organisations.
- Work that is already being supported with ‘beyond money’/Development Plus support from another funder if it’s not clear where we could add value, or why the existing support isn’t enough.
- Part-time or temporary staffing costs.
- Fundraising: we would fund advice, training, and support with developing a fundraising or income generation strategy. We would not fund direct fundraising costs, including bid writing.
- Recruitment: we would fund advice, skills or strategy development around recruitment; we would not fund direct recruitment costs, including outsourced recruitment services, agency commission or advertising fees.
How to Apply
How we will make decisions
Requests will be assessed against:
- Fit to Development Plus guidance
- Work that’s most important for achieving our strategy
- Potential impact of the work
- Annual Development Plus budget available
Funding decisions will be made every four to six weeks, possibly quicker for applications requiring urgent or time sensitive support.
We expect to make 3-6 Development Plus awards each quarter. Even if applications are a strong match to the Development Plus criteria, we may turn them down if there is insufficient budget to support all eligible requests received in a quarter, or we may award at an amount lower than requested.