Make the case for why this project deserves the funding
We help charities, CICs, businesses and other organisations turn a good idea into an application a funder can actually assess, with a clear case for the funding, a credible plan, useful evidence and outcomes that make sense.
You want help shaping, strengthening or reviewing the application before it goes in.
Grant Funding Support is probably the right place.The buyer is procuring a service rather than awarding grant funding.
Look at Bid Review →The issue is how opportunities are found, qualified, planned or managed internally.
Look at Bid Consultancy →You want people to get better at evidence, scoring and stronger applications themselves.
Look at Bid Training →Turning a good idea into a fundable application
A funder needs to see a clear case for the funding, a credible plan for what you will do with it and enough evidence to believe the project can deliver what it says it will.
Explain why this matters now and why this funder should care.
Connect the activity, delivery plan and budget to the problem you are solving.
Use the strongest outcomes, examples and proof so the application feels credible rather than hopeful.
You do not have to hand us a blank page
You have found a grant and want to work out whether it is genuinely worth applying
We can sense-check fit, eligibility and funder priorities before you commit the time.
You know what you want to do, but the application is still stuck in your head
We help you get the project, evidence and outcomes into something the funder can follow.
You have drafted the application and want another pair of eyes before submission
We review the draft against the funder’s questions and criteria and show you where the case could be clearer, stronger or more specific.
Make the application easier for the funder to understand and believe
We look at the application from the other side of the table. That means checking whether the need, activity, outcomes and evidence connect clearly enough for somebody who does not already know your organisation.
Make the case for why the work is needed without relying on assumptions or broad claims.
Show what will happen in practice, who will do it and how the activity links back to the need.
Turn good intentions into changes the funder can understand, assess and reasonably expect you to evidence.
Use the strongest examples, data, partnerships and experience to show why your organisation can deliver.
Start with the funder, the project and what you already have
Send us the opportunity
We look at the funder guidance, questions, criteria, deadlines and anything you already know about the project.
Get the funding story clear
If you have added the strategy support, we work through what matters to the funder, your strongest case for funding, the evidence behind it and the thread the application needs to carry.
We review the application
We review the developed draft against what the funder is asking for and show you where the case, evidence, outcomes or detail could be stronger.
You submit
You keep ownership of the application and the organisation’s voice, with a clearer case for why the project deserves support.
“Melissa brought a sense of calm and reassurance that is so rare in the world of funding and bids. She has taken what can often feel like a stressful, high-pressure process and turned it into something that feels collaborative, empowering and even enjoyable.”
Start with the review, then add strategy if the story needs more work
The core Grant Application Review is priced in line with our other full application reviews. If the application needs more work on the funding story before we review the draft, we can add a focused strategy session first.
Grant Application Review
For a developed application where you want an independent evaluator-led review before submission.
- Full review against the funder questions, guidance and scoring
- Case for funding, evidence and outcomes sense-check
- Clarity, specificity and evaluator confidence review
- Comments on gaps, assumptions and weak links
- Prioritised changes before submission
Funding Story + Review
For applications where the draft is not quite ready for review because the case for funding needs tightening first.
- Everything in the Grant Application Review
- Focused funding-story session before the review
- What matters to this funder and what the application needs to make obvious
- Your strongest reasons to fund, linked to evidence and outcomes
- A clearer thread for the team to carry through the application
Larger, multi-stage, multi-partner or unusually complex applications may be quoted separately. We will tell you before you commit if the application sits outside the standard scope.
We have different rates for eligible charities, CICs and other VCSE organisations below £1m annual turnover, so the standard pricing above may not apply to you.
Before you send the grant over
This service is mainly for a live funding opportunity you have already identified. If you are still at the stage of finding suitable funding, tell us what you are looking for and we can point you towards the most appropriate support.
The exact level of support depends on what you already have and how developed the project is, but the organisation still needs to own the project, evidence and commitments being made. We can help shape and strengthen the application without inventing information that is not yours.
No. Funding decisions depend on the funder, competition, available budget and factors outside our control. Our job is to help make the application clearer, stronger and easier to assess against the published requirements.
Yes. If you want to understand why the previous application did not land and what is actually worth changing before you apply again, our Bid Debrief is the better place to start. We can review the previous application alongside any funder feedback, then help you decide what to carry forward into the next one.
Send us the funder guidance and tell us where you are up to
We can work out whether you need a final review, more support with the funding story or something else entirely.
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