How can we build a stronger case for support?

Review the case from the supporter’s perspective

Choose an existing appeal, proposal or website page and identify who it is asking for support. Read it as someone unfamiliar with your organisation. Does it explain why the work is needed, why your approach is suitable and what the contribution would enable? Highlight anything readers would have to work out for themselves. You might describe a pressing problem without explaining your response, or present strong past results without saying what further funding would make possible. Charities Aid Foundation’s guidance on building a case for support explains how the same underlying case informs appeals, applications and donor conversations. Agree the main explanation and supporting facts, then adjust the detail for each audience.

Connect the need to your proposed response

Explain who is affected, what difficulty they face and how you know. Use relevant research, service information and what people have told you. Give figures dates and enough context to make them understandable. Then describe how your work addresses that difficulty. If people cannot access support, identify the barrier and explain how you will reduce it. If they need consistent help over time, show how your service will provide that continuity. Explain why you chose this approach, drawing on community involvement, previous experience or findings from comparable work. Help readers follow the connection between the activities you propose and the change you hope to achieve.

Show that you can deliver

Give readers evidence that your organisation can carry out the work. This could include relevant staff experience, established partnerships, suitable facilities and results from similar projects. Explain how that evidence relates to this request. If you have delivered comparable work, describe what you learned and any changes needed for a different audience or scale. If the approach is new, explain how you will test it and assess progress. Identify arrangements still to be confirmed, such as recruiting staff or securing a venue, where these could affect delivery. Explain how you plan to address them. For help presenting your results, see our guide to communicating your social impact more clearly.

Explain what the support will enable

State what support you need, how it will be used and the period it covers. Explain whether it will sustain existing work, reach more people or fund something new. Where relevant, distinguish the total cost from the amount you are asking a particular supporter to contribute. Include the resources needed to deliver reliably, such as staff, premises and administration. The National Lottery Community Fund’s full cost recovery guidance explains direct project costs and a proportionate share of overheads. Check each funder’s rules about eligible costs. For ongoing support, describe the services and day-to-day work it helps maintain. Make clear whether donations will fund a specific purpose or your organisation’s wider activities.

Check that the request matches the evidence

Distinguish what your organisation has achieved from what future support is expected to enable. Previous results can explain why you believe an approach will help, but they do not guarantee the same outcome. Check statements linking a donation amount to an activity or result. Use a calculation you can explain, and clarify whether the amount covers the full cost or contributes towards it. Adding “could” does not make an unsupported claim reliable. Make sure the request accurately describes how funds will be used. For an appeal with a specific purpose and target, explain what will happen if you raise more or less than needed. If you say support is urgent, give the reason and any relevant deadline.

Test the explanation and make the next step clear

Ask someone unfamiliar with the work to explain the request back to you. What do they understand their support would enable? What would they still need to know before deciding? Use their questions to identify improvements. Missing cost information may need checking with the budget holder. If the reader cannot explain how an activity will help, clarify the reasoning behind it and make that connection explicit. Finish with an action suited to the request, such as making a donation, arranging a conversation or requesting a full proposal. Make the relevant link or contact details easy to find.