Funding for Irish charity mergers on offer

The Community Foundation for Ireland is offering grants for organisations considering merging. The Foundation says that in the face of current challenges facing the Irish community and voluntary sector, all organisations are looking at ways of working differently. In certain limited circumstances, the Foundation says, some organisations may see benefit in exploring merging permanently with another organisation, or consortium of like-minded organisations. The Foundation says their funds might allow such organisations or consortiums to explore mergers. The funding is for the facilitation of early-stage discussions and negotiations and not the process of merging in action.  The fund is not designed to support for collaborative working or strategic partnerships. Grants of up to €8,000 will pay for associated costs of planning mergers such as hiring an external facilitator, room hire, and travel costs. Interested bodies and/or consortia should email Helen Beatty in confidence to discuss the suitability of submitting an application to the fund. At this stage only a brief introductory paragraph setting out the proposed activity and level of funding is required. There is no application form available and potential applications must be discussed in advance with the Community Foundation. There is no specific closing date for applications.    

from UK Fundraising http://ift.tt/2FFPOXB