CGI: Organisational Development

From our research and consultations with small and Diaspora organisations, we are aware that while there is a great deal of training and consultancy available, much of it is inaccessible or inappropriate for the needs of small and Diaspora organisations.

Our belief is that more flexible and tailored organisational support that helps organisations identify and prioritise their organisational needs, or help to tackle specific identified needs, will deliver greater benefit for small and Diaspora organisations and their partners in Africa.

The Common Ground Initiative is co-funded by the Department for International Development and seeks to make a more strategic investment in small and African Diaspora organisations.

Aim of the programme

Our goal is to enable organisations to have sufficient capacity to support effective programmes in Africa, access funding and organisational support from a range of sources, and influence development debates in the UK.

We have identified seven broad categories of organisational development that small and Diaspora UK-registered charities would particularly benefit from:

• governance and leadership
• organisational strategy and programme planning
• monitoring and evaluation
• financial and operational management
• legal affairs and human resources
• fundraising and communications
• advocacy and influencing.

Type of grants

In order to make our funding for organisational development as flexible and tailored as possible, we will offer two levels of funding support for small or Diaspora UK-registered charities:

Planning: Organisational Development Planning grants would enable applicants that are applying for project grant, or in receipt of a project grant, to request up to £7,000 over a maximum of 12 months.

Organisational Development Planning Grants are intended to cover the costs of a facilitated self-assessment and ongoing organisational mentoring.

In addition to the above, the grant may also cover the costs of:

• Arranging follow-up training and/or consultancies that emerge from the self assessment, where this is appropriate
• Providing clearly identified and specified organisational development training and support, where this is appropriate

Implementation: Organisational Development Implementation grants would enable grantees already in receipt of a Comic Relief grant that have already determined their organisational development needs, and that have a clear plan for at least the first year, to request up to £40,000 over three years for a well thought through and planned organisational development programme.

We will consider paying for the following:

• Work that has as its main focus one or more of the seven core areas of need identified above
• Proposals that have a well-planned process with appropriate methods and providers, or uses an organisational mentor to support the whole organisational development process.

Comic Relief will build and develop over time a list of ‘Comic Relief-approved’ mentors and providers of organisational development support that applicants and grantees can draw on as a resource. However, organisations can agree with Comic Relief to use other providers, as long as they have a relevant and proven track record.

Eligibility Criteria

Organisational Development grants will be open to small and Diaspora UK-registered charities that are existing Comic Relief project grant holders. We will prioritise those grant holders who have over one year before their project grant ends. The Organisational Development grant is not available to those grant holders in possession of a research grant only.

Organisations that do not have an existing grant with Comic Relief will be able to apply in conjunction with their first project grant application when they have a well-documented track record of delivering international development work. Applicants will be able to submit an application for an Organisational Development grant alongside another grant application.

In order to access either type of Organisational Development grant, applicants will need to complete a dedicated on-line application form. Applications will either be assessed directly or alongside an application for another grant.

The awarding of a Planning grant does not automatically guarantee access to an Implementation grant. Organisations will be expected to make a separate application. The outputs from their Planning grant (if they have undertaken one) will form the basis of the assessment for the Implementation grant.

Download the full Common Ground Initiative Organisational Development programme strategy document