What we want to fund

The projects we fund must help make your organisation more resilient and prepared for the future. This means building skills and capacity in your organisation.

You should focus on what will strengthen your organisation the most. This might include improving:

• confidence and skills in digital technology
• how you track and measure your impact
• financial management
• governance and leadership
• volunteer recruitment and support

Confidence and skills in digital technology

You could use funding to improve how your organisation uses digital technology.

For example:

• create a new digital strategy and the tools needed to do this
• provide training for staff and volunteers to improve digital skills
• use a consultant to review your digital challenges and opportunities
• create or improve your website or social media presence
• test new ways of working, such as using AI tools

How you track and measure your impact

You could use funding to strengthen how you measure and understand the difference your work makes.

For example:

• use or buy new digital tools or systems to measure and track impact
• provide training for staff and volunteers on how to measure impact

Financial management

You could use funding to improve your financial planning and management.

For example:

• use a consultant or professional to review how your organisation manages its finances
• explore opportunities to build unrestricted income

Governance and leadership

You could use funding to strengthen your governance and leadership.

For example:

• provide training, coaching or advice in areas such as strategic planning, safeguarding and leadership skills
• work with other organisations to share services or systems, such as equipment, software or staff
• improve your policies and processes
• prepare for changes in leadership or key roles

Volunteer recruitment and support

You could use funding to improve how you recruit, support and develop volunteers.

For example:

• strengthen how you recruit, manage and recognise volunteers
• provide training and qualifications for your volunteers

Our funding priorities

We want to support more organisations to access funding from Dormant Assets for All. We aim to spread funding across Northern Ireland and cover different areas and types of work.

When making decisions, we will prioritise projects from organisations that:

• have a low income
• have not had funding from the Dormant Accounts Fund NI

Working with adults at risk, children or young people

If you will be working with children, young people or vulnerable adults, you must have a safeguarding policy in place.

If you get funding, you must follow our safeguarding expectations.

The Volunteer Now website has advice and information on child safeguarding.