Grant Application
NOTICE TO GRANTEES:
July 17, 2024 — To ensure that Centennial has funding for our current grantees throughout the year, we are suspending new grant requests effective immediately. This suspension includes funding for both new organisations and new programmes from existing partners. Letters of Intent for new programmes will not be accepted in September and will resume the letter of intent process on December 1, 2024. Despite increasing our grants budget, the demand has exceeded our capacity, highlighting the significant need in our community. We did not make this decision lightly and value our ongoing partnerships.
Click here to apply for a grant.
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Grantmaking Approach
Centennial has published its Community Investment Priorities and Grantmaking Guidelines. The information in this guidance document is essential to every grant application, and it applies to all new and continuing projects.
Documents to download:
Community Investment Priorities and Grantmaking Guidelines – Full document (51 pages)
Community Investment Priorities Summary – Highlights and Overview (7 pages)
Grantmaking focuses on the five key Focus Areas as listed below. All information is included in the full Guidelines document above, however each Focus Area section can also be downloaded separately – click the heading:
- Community Health
- Cultural & Community Connections
- Economic Participation
- Fundamental Needs
- Public Education
How to use this information before applying for funding:
- An applicant should first decide which Focus Area is the best fit for their programme or project. More than 1 Focus Area can be selected.*
- Align the project with an identified priority within your chosen Focus Area.
- Select which Aligned Outcome (measurement) you will report on. Funded partners must choose and report on at least one.**
*More than 1 Focus Area can be selected.
Centennial’s grantmaking decisions will be made according to its five identified focus areas.
Example: An organisation that provides shelter housing as well as employment & life skills training to its recipients, can select the Focus Areas of Economic Participation and Fundamental Need.
This supports an integrated and holistic approach to service and project delivery, that we believe will accelerate impact and address the needs and vulnerabilities of the community.
**Funded partners must choose and report on at least one Aligned Outcome.
Successful applicants must choose at least one intended outcome from the aligned outcomes list provided in the document – Community Investment Priorities and Grantmaking Guidelines.
Applicants can insert additional rows to include additional outcomes of their choosing not listed within grantmaking guidelines, however Centennial will only require progress reporting and tracking on the intended outcomes selected from the Guidelines document.
Grantmaking Guidelines
Eligibility
Centennial is committed to conducting a transparent and fair grantmaking process.
Centennial Grant Review Committees, comprised of community volunteers and staff (a list of review committee members can be found here) are responsible for making grant recommendations to Centennial’s Board of Directors. Final funding decisions are made by the Centennial Board of Directors based on Grant Review Committees’ recommendations and in consultation with the Chairs of the respective Grant Review Committees.
Grant applicants must demonstrate an alignment with Centennial’s focus areas and strategic priorities to be considered for funding.
Centennial does not grant funds to:
- Organisations that discriminate against certain groups or individuals in the delivery of programmes and services based on race, religion, national origin, gender, age, sexual orientation, or disability or in any other manner that offends Centennial’s Non-Discrimination Policy
- Political candidates, political campaigns, or political parties
- Overseas organisations
- Individuals
- Personal medical needs
- Fundraising dinners or events
- Corporate memberships with organisations
- Religious worship, instruction, or proselytising
Partnerships and Collaboration
Centennial views grant applicants and recipients as partners working to achieve our objectives.
As such, a proposal may be negotiated with the applicant so that funding is directed toward projects most likely to meet our ongoing Community Investment Priorities.
We recognise that to achieve the intended outcomes for our community it is necessary to partner with a wide range of organisations; some will be fully established, well-structured and sustainable registered charities under the Charities Act 2014, while others may have a less formal structure, but may have a compelling solution to achieve our objectives. In all cases we expect a willingness to partner with us to ensure efforts are viable and practical.
First time applicants
Organisations not currently funded by Centennial are required to complete an organisation profile in the grants management system and complete a Letter of Intent 45 days prior to a designated triannual grant cycle date.
Budget Financial Requirements
Be prepared to provide a basic budget and financial statements to be eligible for a grant.
Organisations with less than $50K annual income must provide income statement and balance sheet for current fiscal year.
Organisations with more than $50K annual income but less than $450K must provide full GAAP Financials (Income Statement, Balance Sheet, and Cash Flow Statement for current fiscal year).
Organisations with an annual income over $450K must provide the most recent audited financials and provide full GAAP financials.
Example Budget Form can be found here.
Reporting Requirements
Centennial requires that timely reports be submitted for all approved grants. The process of reporting is to provide us with information to help inform our grantmaking decisions, and to track the effectiveness of our investments in the community, aligned to our priorities. We also intend that reporting requirements will provide partners with a framework to help shape and inform their services, and to assist with fundraising, volunteer recruitment and achieving their mission. Centennial’s grant reporting templates are located within the grants management system portal.
More information on reporting requirements can be found here.
Types of Grants
Project Grant
Funding to support a specific project or service to be provided to the community.
Example Project Grant application can be found here.
Operating Grant
Funding for general operations to support overall mission of the organisation.
Criteria for Eligibility:
- Organisation has been funded within the last three years by Centennial
- Organisation has successfully met identified outcomes
- Applicants will only be eligible for one operating grant per year
- An applicant may ask for solely an operating grant, or a combination of an operating grant and a programme grant – “Hybrid”
Example Operating Grant application can be found here.
Project & Operating Grant – “Hybrid”
Funding for both general operations and specific support of a project or service to be provided to the community.
Example Project & Operating Grant – “Hybrid” application can be found here.
Capacity Building Grant
Funding for an organisation or backbone organisation to grow impact by developing competencies, strategies, systems and structures to improve organisational and/or community effectiveness. Listed approaches:
- Assessment (Needs/Feasibility)
- Strategic Planning
- Conference/Convening
- Training (public, customised, online)
- Coordinating Alliances & Collaborative Efforts
- Accreditation/Certification
- Evaluation
Example Capacity Building Grant application can be found here.
Application Process
Application requirements, submission deadlines and timeline
Centennial accepts funding application requests for two level of grants, funded in Bermuda dollars (BMD). An eligible applicant can only apply for one Tier 1 and one Tier 2 grant per year. Of the two tiers, only one operating grant can be requested per year.
Tier 1 Under $25,000 Submission Deadlines: January 15th, April 15th, August 15th and November 15th
Tier 2 Over $25,000 Submission Deadlines: January 31st, May 31st and September 30th
Application Requirements: Complete online application form
Grant Decision Timeline: Within 6 – 8 weeks
Funding Periods
One-Year Funding: Most grants for projects will be made for one year at a time to enable appropriate review and monitoring.
Multi-Year Funding: Centennial will consider multi-year funding for Tier 2 applicants only on a case-by-case scenario. The organisation will have a proven track record of success, clear and measurable performance outcomes, and regular reports on impact and results.
New applicants or programmes not currently funded by Centennial
For Tier 2 grant requests from new applicants, or for projects and programmes not currently funded by Centennial, these initial 2-steps must be completed:
1. Submit an online Letter of Intent (LOI) for review and approval
LOI Submission Deadlines: April 15th, August 15th, December 15th
LOI Response Timeline: Within 4 weeks
2. After LOI approval, complete online application form
About the online Letter of Intent (LOI)
The one-page LOI is a brief overview that enables Centennial and the applicant to determine if the project is within our funding priorities and budget, and addresses relevant community need.
Applicants will receive feedback on their request and if the LOI is successful, should complete the online grant application by the next Submission Deadline.
A positive response to an LOI does not imply that the grant application will be approved.
An example Letter of Intent can be found here.
Grants Previously Awarded
To view information on the specific grants Centennial has recently made, please visit the Grantmaking History page.
Downloads
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