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How to apply for grants

Following through

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You are here: Home > Community and Living > Fundraising information > How to apply for grants > Following through > If you have been unsuccessful

If you have been unsuccessful

This page contains information on what to do if your grant application is unsuccessful.

First and foremost try not to be too disappointed, there are so many factors that can result in the failure of an application, particularly in such a competitive climate.

You may feel that your project was the perfect fit, meeting all the associated criteria, and following the guidelines implicitly. Should this be the reality then there are a number of other factors that may affect success, for example, it may come down to the:

• Location of the project
• Wealth of an area - it can be difficult to secure donations in areas perceived to be wealthy
• Belief that there are other more suitable ‘givers’ available to you
• Exhaustion of support for one type of project (i.e. a run of youth shelter applications)
• The feeling that the project is so well supported it is likely to go ahead despite a NO!
• Division of the available money in order to reach/ benefit the greatest number of people
• Division of the money to ensure the maximum PR benefit
• Simple preference to one project over another.

What the above tries to demonstrate is that good applications do still get rejected, and that in actual fact a whole host of factors may enter into the equation.

Anybody who has turned you down should be seen as a possibility for future support (unless there are clear reasons why they will never support you). It is your challenge to present a better case next time or even the time after – remember persistence can pay. 

Use a failure as an opportunity to learn from the process and contact the grant maker for feedback. The reasons given as to the failure of your application may help you next time. However, do bear in mind that the feedback you gain maybe the ‘polite’ version rather than the real truth of the matter.

You should consider when and how next to approach them. As most grant-making bodies work on annual grant cycles, you may decide to go back for more support next year. As a rule, never apply to the same funder more than once in their financial year.