Application Form
Part A: GUIDANCE NOTE
Feed the Minds (FTM) supports projects which empower marginalised people in the Global South through our Education for Change programme. FTM partners are non-governmental organisations or community-based organisations working to support marginalised communities. They range from small organisations new to project management to larger organisations working across several countries. Some of our partners are Christian; some are of different faiths while others are of none. Literacy is central to our strategy therefore all projects supported by FTM must have a literacy component.
General Criteria
Projects are between one and three years in length. One year projects should have a budget of up to £10,000. Projects longer than one year and up to three years should have a budget of up to £25,000. Other general criteria that projects have to meet in the Education for Change programme are outlined below.
FTM supports projects which:
Ø bring about meaningful changes in the lives of the beneficiaries
Ø have a literacy component which strengthens communities and civil society
Ø arise from a locally identified need and are appropriate to local context and culture
Ø engage target groups in active learning
Ø use participatory approaches to achieve clear outcomes
Ø involve local people in decision-making throughout the project
Ø recognise the important role that women play in development
Ø are sustainable and have an impact that continues beyond the funding period
Ø build the capacity of partner organisations and local communities
Ø target marginalised communities
Ø are cost-effective
Ø prioritise indigenous literature and / or knowledge
FTM does not support projects which:
Ø include more than 15% for capital expenditure (e.g. buildings, vehicles or IT equipment)
Ø focus primarily on the provision of materials (e.g. books for libraries, uniforms for orphans)
Ø focus primarily on providing healthcare, agriculture, animal husbandry, shelter, food
Ø include funding for micro-credit
Ø fund doctoral or other research
Ø provide school fees or scholarships
Ø provide free distribution of journals or periodicals
Ø focus on Bible translation
Ø bribe, coerce or entice people to convert to any religious belief
Ø support for journals, periodicals or magazines
Ø are developed and managed by organisations based in the Global North
Ø are aimed primarily at raising awareness of development issues in the Global North
Ø are not in line with FTM’s HIV & AIDS Policy
Themes
FTM supports projects in five thematic areas:
Ø Civic education for adults to actively engage in community issues including through local decision making, claiming their rights, and participation in democratic processes.
Ø Health awareness-raising, prevention and education projects which adopt an inclusive and compassionate approach.
Ø Peacebuilding projects in fragile states, including trauma-healing, conflict resolution, training church leaders, inter-religious dialogue.
Ø Theological education which links with community issues. This includes support for existing Theological Education by Extension programmes to strengthen the role of Church leaders in addressing issues in marginalised communities.
Ø Vocational training for adults of low economic status who have limited access to employment and income opportunities. Applications must show clearly a need for the skill to be taught and realistic opportunities for sustainable income generation. The trainers must have relevant and demonstrable expertise.
For health projects in the area of HIV, Feed the Minds does not support projects that apply the ABC framework to working with HIV and AIDS. Preference is given to applications that apply the SAVE framework as this is seen as being most in keeping with FTM’s values and mission. There is more information about this in FTM’s HIV policy, available at this link: http://www.feedtheminds.org/about-us/policies/
Literacy
We ask all partners to explain in their application how their project can support the development of literacy skills. Feed the Minds does not promote any one approach to literacy. However our focus is on using literacy to bring about meaningful changes in peoples’ lives and we favor participatory approaches to teaching whereby learners are actively involved in the learning process.
Where literacy is school-based, it would be appropriate to link closely to the school curriculum, perhaps through some use of primers. However, we strongly advise against entirely primer-based approaches as this tends to lead to passive learning. FTM has developed a Five Point Plan that can be used by partners to bring literacy into their projects. The five points of the plan are:
1. To be aware of the literacy levels and practices of beneficiaries (i.e. how different groups in the community use literacy and numeracy and their experiences of using textual materials).
2. To avoid discriminating against people who are non-literate.
3. To examine the use of textual materials in the project and adapt where possible to reflect the literacy levels of those using them.
4. To identify opportunities where literacy skills can be developed.
5. To provide opportunities for ideas and experiences for promoting literacy to be shared.
There is more information about FTM’s position on literacy and the Five Point Plan at this link: http://www.feedtheminds.org/about-us/policies/
Complete your application in English and email it to . Please note that applications must be received by us on or before the deadline indicated on the website.
Partners with current projects should contact Feed the Minds before completing new applications.
B. YOUR ORGANISATION1. Name of organisation
2. Full postal address of organisation
3. Full physical address of organisation (if different from postal address)
4. Telephone number
(Including country and city codes)
5. Email/s
6. Website/Facebook page (if you have a website/Facebook page)
7. Full name and position of your contact person
8. When was your organisation established? (include month and year)
9. Main aims and objectives of your organisation
a) What is the purpose of your organisation?
b) Who are the main groups you work with?
10. What are the main projects that have been carried out by your organisation over the last three years?
Year / Project title / Budget in £GBP / Funding Organisation
11. Has your organisation received funding from Feed the Minds in the past?
If yes, please give information like dates, amount of funding, project title and reference number (if possible)
12. How does your organisation fund its activities?
Please include other donors and local contribution (if applicable)
13. How many staff members work in your organisation? Please indicate how many are men and how many are women.
Male / Female
14. What is the management structure of your organisation? (i.e. who makes decisions about the organisation and within the decision making body who reports to whom)
15. Do you have a governing body/Board of Trustees? (if yes, please provide some information)
16. How would you describe your organisation?
(please tick all relevant boxes) / Non-governmental organisation (NGO)
Community-based organisation (CBO)
Other (please specify)
17. Is your organisation linked with local churches or other faith-based organisations? If Yes, please provide some information (Eg. Religious leaders on your board of trustees, working with churches in delivering your programmes, receiving support from religious institutions or religious principles influencing your work)
18. Please supply details of two external referees
(Referees should be independent and not a part of your organisation. If you have received funding for projects in the past referees should be from funding organisations.)
First referee / Second referee
Name
Organisation
Job title
Phone number
Including country and city codes
How does this person know your organisation?
How long have they known you for?
C. Your Project
1. Title of project
2. Length of Project
3. Name of the place (country, district and villages) where the project will run
a) Have you had a project in this area before? If yes, please provide a short summary of the project and explain why you wish to have another project here. If no, please explain why you want to work in this area.
4. What are the main problems facing communities in this area?
5. What are the goals you are trying to achieve through this project?
6. How do you know if the goals you are trying to achieve meet the needs of the community? (If you have carried out a ‘needs assessment’ please provide some information here.)
7. How many people will you help through the project in total? How many are men and how many are women? / Total Male / Total Female
Total Amount =
8. Please provide some information about the groups you will help through the project, the number of people within each group and how many are men and women. [Eg. 20 (5 men, 15 women) health care workers, 40 (10 men, 30 women) community volunteers, 200 pregnant women].
9. What changes do you hope to achieve for these groups by the end of the project?
10. What are the main activities you will carry out through the project? If you will have activities over a number of years please indicate the activities you will carry out in each year.
11. Will the project help people to develop their literacy skills? If yes, please explain.
12. Please explain why you think your organisation is the right organisation to carry out this project? (Eg what knowledge and skills do you have within the organisation, what experience do you have of carrying out projects or activities like this?)
13. Are there any activities or issues in this project that you have not worked on before? Why have you decided to include these new activities or issues?
Section D – Budget – Please complete the separate budget spreadsheet
Please provide sufficient detail on the costs associated with the project and how funds will be used.
Where possible breakdown the costs (e.g. HIV & AIDS training – venue, speaker fees, handouts, food).
4
Autumn 2015