The trustees of Scottish Grantmakers (SGM) were delighted to bring in chairs of our member organisations from around Scotland for the annual Chairs’ Reception, on Thursday 23 May at the V&A Dundee.

The evening began with a welcome from Barry Ferguson, Director of Philanthropy & Partnerships at the V&A Dundee, who spoke about the impact many of Scottish Grantmakers’ members through their donations to the V&A Dundee. The funding enables the museum to feature exhibitions like their current Kimonos: Kyoto to Runway, which the chairs were given a private viewing of.

Chair of SGM, Ali MacLachlan, led a roundtable discussion surrounding the principles of SGM: community, training and learning, inspiration, and representation.

Chairs reflected on how SGM as a networking body can be a source of collaboration among grant makers. One of the primary discussions centred around the inherent difficulties small grant makers face when they themselves apply for funding. These included:

• Staffing Constraints: With limited personnel, small grant making bodies find it challenging to dedicate sufficient time and resources to apply for funding. The lack of staff, specifically for fundraising, often places an additional burden on already stretched teams.

• Lack of Core Funding: Many small charities struggle with securing core funding, which is essential for their day-to-day operations. The focus of many grants on project-specific funding leaves these organisations grappling with sustainability and the means to maintain their essential services.

• Ill-Fitting Applications and Feedback: The one-size-fits-all nature of many grant applications does not cater well to the unique needs and circumstances of small charities and community group. These forms rarely encompass the full need of the funding and require time from staff that is already limited.

In response to these identified challenges, the chairs discussed the need for small funders to increase collaboration and share knowledge and resources to better understand and respond to community needs. Joint projects are an opportunity to make a larger impact and reduce stress on volunteers and small staffs.

The conversation on how the SGM network can foster a collaborative environment will continue throughout our 2024 events. SGM will aim to make more time for networking and space for members to discuss the theme(s) of their funding.

If you have any thoughts on these themes or suggestions on how to address the issues identified by the chairs, please share them with scottishgrantmakers@wssociety.co.uk.