Adding Value to Grant-making

Foundations that fund research need to make the knowledge and evidence produced work hard to get maximum value from it. It takes a great deal of time and resources to turn research and evidence gathering into changes in policy and practice.

The Foundation has published a toolkit which is the result of a two-year innovative partnership project between the Foundation and the University of Bristol which set out to assess how using a research/project approach – combining grant-making with sector-specific research and capacity building activities – could improve the value of its investment in the sector.

The project has improved our understanding of how the Foundation can make its research knowledge and evidence work harder to maximise its impact on project development, policy and practice by focused planning for commissioning, governance and knowledge translation.

 

Adding Value to Grant-making: The Role of the Programme Manager, November 2013

The importance of the programme manager and the skill set necessary to generate impact from the research/project approach emerged early on in the analysis and this ‘by-product’ of the KTP project generated much interest from others currently working on the wider impact agenda.

The KTP project found that the programme manager has a ‘knowledge broker role’ which is very important in the knowledge translation process in terms of accelerating the transformation of knowlegde into action (and therefore of the utilisation and outcomes of the research). The progrmme manager, in effect, becomes an additional player within the ‘impact interface’, suggesting that responsibilty for driving or facilitating that impact does not necessarily only lie with either those who produce the research or those who use it.

 

Adding Value to Grant-making: Northern Rock Foundation’s ‘Research/Project’ Approach, November 2012

This report presents the findings of the Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) project between the Foundation and the University of Bristol.

 

Adding Value to Grantmaking Toolkit

This toolkit has been designed primarily with Trusts and Foundations in mind but it may be useful to other third sector organisations that use, fund or commission research to support their work. The aim of this guidance is to help you get the most value and impact from your investment in research and resulting grant-making by helping you to think through the process of planning, governing and disseminating a research project.

 

Toolkit Stage One

This stage of the toolkit is designed to guide you through the process of defining the problem; exploring the existing evidence; mapping the changes you would like to happen in order to help you clearly define or understand your research questions.

 

Toolkit Stage Two

This stage is intended to provide considerations and helpful hints to help you develop and govern your research project, rathern than be a comprehensive guide to the commissioning process.

 

Toolkit Stage Three

This stage is about working with your potential audience(s) so that they are receptive to the research and more likely and able to use it.

 

Toolkit Stage Four

This stage is intended to guide you through the processes needed to effectively translate and transfer your research knowledge to your target audience(s).

 

Toolkit Stage Five

This stage is intended to guide you through reviewing or measuring the progress, outcomes and impact of your research/project.