IofC UK Grant-Making Principles

Inspired by Christ’s Sermon on the Mount, we partner with charities through grant-making to foster impactful initiatives for reconciliation, peace with justice and ethical leadership.

Who is eligible to apply for a grant?

We are an invitation-funder. We will not accept unsolicited applications but will seek out bodies and projects which are aligned to our Christian charitable purpose and can demonstrate the capacity to deliver on our desired outcomes.

‍What kind of change will we fund?

‍We will focus on projects which achieve in practical ways ‘the advancement of the Christian religion, in accordance with the principles of The Oxford Group, founded by Frank Buchman’. 

We want our funding to encourage change in individuals that leads to measurable outcomes in society, in terms of social, cultural or educational impact. Potential partners will need to be highly focused on the kind of change they aspire to make, how they will achieve this and how they will monitor and measure their success.

What kind of bodies will we fund?

‍We will support non-profit organisations with annual incomes below £5 million, as this is where our limited support can make the most difference. Exceptions may be made at the discretion of the Trustees.

Will we only support charities?

Any recipient of IofC funds must be a non-profit body with credible governance, a record of demonstrable impact and a culture of transparent accountability. In the main, these will be charities or community interest companies.

How closely will we be involved with the work that we support?

Our grants will be contractual but not simply transactional:  they are the basis of a partnership. We will respect the autonomy of any organisation we fund, while setting high expectations of accountability. Some relationships will be light touch. Others may involve closer engagement, with a potential for mentoring or a more creative role. We will not engage hands-on in the delivery of programmes.

‍How will we monitor impact?

Outcomes will be monitored by measuring change against a baseline prior to our intervention, and again after the intervention, so the beneficiaries’ arc of change is tracked. This may not be easy but our partners will need to offer more than anecdotal or unevidenced claims. We will work with them to determine the best way to substantiate the impact of our grant. 

What scale of support will we give?

The size of funding awarded is entirely at the discretion of the trustees of the Charity and there is no fixed size. The size of grant will be proportionate to the availability of funds and the scale, credibility and impact of the recipient.

What duration will grants have?

The duration of grants will vary from project to project. We may decide to extend or repeat a grant if we believe the project merits this. We will not make open-ended commitments.

Will we only fund Christian organisations?

We will look for organisations and projects whose objectives are clearly aligned with our Christian principles. They may be Christian bodies but they must be clearly aligned with our ethos and aims.

Will we fund IofC projects or programmes?

Every project considered for funding will be assessed by the same criteria. 

For the sake of good governance, all potential grantees will be asked to declare any previous funding received from the Oxford Group, or any relationship to persons connected with this Charity.

Will we fund projects overseas?

Grants will normally be made to bodies legally registered in the United Kingdom. Projects supported will normally be in the United Kingdom. By exception, a grant may be made to a charity registered abroad. Any such grant will be subject to exceptional scrutiny and diligence controls.

Will we fund individuals?

We will not fund individual persons.

How will grants be decided on?

The Executive Director of the Charity will from time to time make recommendations to the Trustees. Normally these will be reviewed first by the Audit and Risk Committee. Grants will only be awarded after approval by a majority vote of the Board.