Flexible funding

Our vision for Open and Trusting Grant-making

When funders join the Open and Trusting community, they are signing up to this vision. 

Voluntary organisations need flexible funding to deliver better outcomes for communities. So, we make and manage grants in a way that enables them to respond to changing needs.

In a context of limited resources and increasing need, we believe that working together towards shared goals, by making the most use of precious resources on all sides, will lead to greater impact.

Ultimately, our vision is that:

• Grant processes feel easy, straightforward and trusting
• Voluntary organisations are respected and trusted to know best how to deliver their missions
• Voluntary organisations and funders approach impact as a shared endeavour
• A culture of mutual understanding and respect becomes the norm

How we make grants matters – who we reach, how we judge applications, the kind of funding we give and the relationships we build. We hope that by working in this way, we create more equitable funding that enables communities to flourish and thrive.

Key terms

• We use voluntary organisations to refer to all types of grant recipients who are working in and with communities – charities, CICs, social enterprises, unincorporated groups.
• We use flexible funding to refer to funding that applies the eight commitments of Open and Trusting Grant-making.
• You can read more about what equity, diversity and inclusion means for Open and Trusting in our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

If you’re an intermediary funder (e.g. you receive and distribute grants), we invite you to join our Community of Practice for trusts and foundations – whether you distribute grants for an independent funder or a public agency, or a mix of the two.

We recognise that intermediary funders face particular challenges – such as having to pass on restrictions that other funders set. Many funders who are already part of Open and Trusting face this challenge, and it’s one we explore regularly. We see you as occupying a unique space where you can influence the practice of other funders, while also making your grant-making as flexible as possible within your particular constraints.

If you’re a funder based outside of the UK, you may be interested in Catalyst 2030, the Philanthropy Initiative from Wings or the Trust-based Philanthropy Project. You may also find relevant research insights on our website

If you’re a charity who is interested in which funders have signed up to Open and Trusting – you can browse our pages for:

• Trusts and foundations – which share the logos of all independent funders who are part of the community, along with how they are putting the eight commitments into practice.
• Public agencies – which gives examples of the grants teams, organisations and partnerships who are working towards an Open and Trusting approach.

You may also be interested in joining our mailing list where we share the details of our regular Zoom peer support sessions for charity leaders.

We are trying to build dialogue between charities and funders, so part of the focus is always on exploring how funders can best support you – and we share emerging themes with grantmakers to encourage them to adapt their practice. Please rest assured that views are anonymous, unless otherwise agreed with you.

You can read more about this by visiting: www.ivar.org.uk/leading-in-uncertainty