What is Funds Online?
Funds Online is an online database with over 8,000 funders with the potential to give away billions of pounds overall to organisations and individuals. By subscribing, either as an organisation or an individual, fundraising suddenly becomes that much easier.
Funds Online details information on all funders featured in Directory of Social Change’s funding guides and directories, as well as many which are not and are exclusively available here to subscribers. These include: grant-making charities, trusts and foundations which give to both organisations and individuals; corporate funders giving cash donations and in-kind support to organisations; and, statutory providers such as local authorities in England, central government departments, independent grant administrators such as research councils and the Big Lottery Fund, and some European funding streams.
Funds Online offers powerful and intuitive searches to find the funding opportunities that are right for you. The information contained within the site is updated regularly throughout the year, and subscribers can receive email alerts on their saved searches and saved funders, manage their fundraising prospects and administer multi-user accounts with ease, gaining greater insight into their team’s activities and performance.
Funds Online is published, managed and administered by DSC and the research is carried by our in-house team of expert analysts, which means our 40 years of accumulated knowledge and experience of the funding and fundraising landscape underpins the wealth of information contained within the site.
Who is it for?
Funds Online is for a range of different types of organisations, including registered charities, universities, schools, churches, CICs, social enterprises and non-profit organisations that need to raise funds. It is also for individuals in need, and those looking for financial and other support on their behalf, for social welfare, education and training and health-related purposes.
Is it relevant for non-registered charities and voluntary and community groups?
Yes, Funds Online is relevant; however, if you are not a registered charity it is always worth checking the eligibility criteria for each funder to ensure that it is right for you.
Is it relevant for individuals?
Yes, Funds Online features grant-making charities that give grants and other financial support to individuals for education and training, social welfare and health-related purposes.
It is relevant outside the UK?
The site primarily features grant-making charities that are registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales and the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator which fund organisations working in the UK or individuals based in the UK; however, the site does contain information on grant-making charities whose beneficial areas lie outside of the UK, such as developing countries.
The vast majority of the information on companies focuses on their giving and community activities in the UK.
For statutory providers, the primary focus is in England, although independent grant administrators and the European funding streams can cover the UK. Government schemes and European funding streams focused outside of the UK are not featured on the site.
How many funders are on the site?
The site contains information on around 7,500 grant-making charities giving grants to both organisation and individuals, 500 companies and 170 programmes and funding streams from central and local government, independent grant administrators and European bodies.
We are continually working to add new funders and funding opportunities to the site.
How much do the funders give in total?
The grant-making charities featured on the site give around £4.9 billion in grants each year to organisations for a wide range of purposes and £383 million to individuals for education and training, social welfare and health-related purposes; the companies distribute around £330 million in cash and in-kind contributions; and the various statutory programmes and funding streams are valued at around £2.4 billion.
Does DSC sell books about funders and fundraising?
Yes, we are one of the leading researchers and publishers of funding and fundraising books as well as publications on charity finance, law, management and leadership. Our best known annual and bi-annual funding titles which are created from our powerful database include:
- The Guide to Major Trusts
- The Directory of Grant-Making Trusts
- The Guide to Educational Grants
- The Guide to Grants for Individuals in Need
- The Guide to New Trusts (annual)
- The Guide to UK Company Giving
We also provide ‘how to’ fundraising guidance such as:
- The Complete Fundraising Handbook – the most comprehensive reference guide to fundraising
- Legacy and In-Memory Fundraising
- Corporate Fundraising and Partnerships
- Community Fundraising
Please visit DSC’s website for more information.
How do I save a search?
Each time you perform a search, you are given the option to save this search by clicking ‘Save search criteria in my dashboard’. This search is then saved in your profile, where you can name it, add notes and run it again without having to select each individual criteria.
Where is the ‘Save search criteria in my dashboard’ button on the search page?
Once you have saved your search the ‘Save search criteria in my dashboard’ button will disappear until you change the search criteria. So if you are trying to save your search and can no longer see the ‘Save search criteria in my dashboard’ button, its possible that it already saved. Check your dashboard to be certain. Once you update your search criteria, the button will return.
How do I save a funder?
When you have run a search, you will see a list of results relating to that search. Next to each result you are given the option to save the funder by clicking ‘Save funder in my dashboard’. You can open a record to view all the information on that funder, which also gives you the option to save this funder to your profile.
My search results include funders that do not accept unsolicited applications
Ensure that you have a tick in the ‘Show funders that accept unsolicited applications’ box. If this box is unticked, all funders that match your search criteria will be displayed, including those that do not accept unsolicited applications.
I can’t log on – what do I do?
The majority of logging in problems are caused by typing errors. Please carefully retype your email address and password.
If you do not have your password, please click ‘Forgot password’ in the Log-in panel. You will then be sent a link via email to reset your password (where you can create a new one).
I am already subscribed, but when I look for funding it takes me to the re-subscribe page
Deleting ‘cookies’ or logging out will require you to log back in. This is also the case if you click on a link in an email update about your saved searches or saved funders and are unable to view their records – you simply need to log back in.
I want to re-subscribe, but I get a message saying ‘user already exists with this email address’
Your email address is on our database as you have previously had a subscription to Funds Online – you can use your previous log in details to sign in and re-subscribe.
If you do not have your password, please click ‘Forgot password’ in the Log-in panel and enter your email address. You will then be sent a link via email to reset your password (where you can create a new one).
I want to upgrade to see additional search results
The search results you see depend on the type of records you have purchased access to. If you have previously had a subscription to Trustfunding, you can search and view all of the records for grant-making charities that give grants to organisations; if you have previously had a subscription to Grantsforindividuals, you can search and view all of the records for grant-making charities that give grants to individuals; a previous subscription to Companygiving allows you to search and view all of the company records; a previous subscription to Governmentfunding allows you to search and view all of the records for the statutory providers.
When you carry out a search, all the relevant records within the site will be searched. If you want to view additional results outside of your subscription, simply click the ‘Upgrade’ button to enhance your subscription and see those results. You will then have access to this additional data for the duration of your subscription.
I want to change my contact details
You can do this by going to your Dashboard and clicking on ‘My personal details’.
I need to change the multi-user account administrator OR add or delete a user
To change the multi-user account administrator, please contact our Customer Services Team on 020 4526 5995 or by email at: cs@dsc.org.uk.
Adding or deleting users can be done from the multi-users account administrator’s dashboard.
Handy guides to download and guide you through
How to conduct searches
Download this handy step-by-step guide that takes you through various search options.
Assigning users to a subscription
Download this handy guide on how to assign users to a subscription.