FAQ

Welcome! Thanks for taking the time to learn more about GrantAdvisor UK

Q. I'm a grantmaker and I'd like to register on GrantAdvisor UK, how can I do that? What benefits will I receive?

A. We're delighted to hear that. You can sign up to GrantAdvisor UK by completing this short registration form. We will then be in touch to support you to gather reviews from grantseekers. If you're a funder you get:

• Ratings of what you are good at (similar to peer reviews for skills on LinkedIn)
• Ratings for your accessibility
• Granular feedback on what you are doing well
• Advice on what you could do better
• Space to respond to reviews

This is the type of data that can help you become more responsive and accessible to the organisations and causes you want to fund.

Also, if you encourage your grantees and applicants to leave a review then it shows everyone your commitment to openness and fairness.

Q. I work at a social impact organisation, I want to write a review for a grantmaker but I can't see them listed on GrantAdvisor UK, can I still share my feedback?

A. Yes, you can share your feedback on any funder including trusts and foundations or corporates. Please write a review and select 'Other' from the list of organisations. You will then be able to write your anonymous review. If you prefer, you can also contact us and we can support you to share your experience. We will get in touch with the grantgiver to register them on the site. Thank you for helping us grow our community.

Q. Why is GrantAdvisor UK good for social impact organisations?

GrantAdvisor UK helps improve communication between grantgivers and grantseekers so we can learn and improve. If you’re a social impact organisation you can:

• Leave anonymous reviews for any funder, even if its not yet listed - helping others and letting the funder know about your experience
• See others’ experiences of applying to funders - including how long it takes to complete the application process and how much funding they applied for
• See others’ experience of funders, and what funders had to say in response
• Show support for or share a negative experience of any funder

Thank you for taking the time to share your experiences.

Q. Is the feedback anonymous?

All reviews are 100% anonymous. We hope this will encourage real and honest feedback. Funders will have the opportunity to post responses and comments using the real name of their foundation.

Q. If all feedback is anonymous, how do you know it is legitimate, and not just a disgruntled grantee who didn’t get funding (or an alternative grantmaker looking to discredit a rival)?

A. Social impact organisations have a lot of integrity so we don’t expect this to be a considerable issue - certainly not a high enough risk that we won’t publish everything openly. Still, it’s on the internet, so as always we advise readers to use their judgement to determine which reviews sound credible.

Q. How do you monitor the submission of multiple reviews? Do you check IP addresses? If not, how do you know the results are not skewed by multiple submissions?

A. We do not take email addresses or IP addresses, as this would mean reviews were not truly anonymous. Even if we encrypted them, traffic analysis could still be used to predict with quite a lot of accuracy who the reviewer was. We are confident that multiple submissions are rare.

Q. How is feedback moderated / checked? Is it vetted before it is uploaded?

A. Feedback doesn’t go live straight away. It is passed to - and checked by - CAST.

Q. Once feedback has been uploaded, what is the process in terms of a funder being notified / having the opportunity to respond?

A. Once submitted, the status of a review is listed as ‘pending’; the CAST team is notified and will check the submission; it will then either pass or fail moderation. If it passes, the funder is notified and can then log in and respond to the comment.

Q. Is this for all types of grantmaker: independent / corporate / community?

A. Yes, open to any funder who want to get honest feedback and to support the grantmaking/grantseeking communities.

Q. What is the complaint / investigation process, if a funder requests that feedback be removed or edited? How is the decision made?

A. At the moment the final decision sits with CAST. The only feedback that has been removed or edited has been spam - no actual feedback has ever been taken down due to a funder’s request.

Q. How are you working with The Institute for Voluntary Action Research (IVAR)? Why do some funder pages have IVAR's Open and Trusting Grant-making badge?

We are exploring opportunities to align, starting with letting grant seekers know which funders are signed up to IVAR's Open and Trusting commitments. If you see this badge on a funder page, it means this funder is signed up to Open and Trusting Grant-making, a pledge to actively work on managing the grants process in a way that reflects their confidence in and respect for the organisations they fund. Find out more here.

Q. Has the GrantAdvisor UK platform relaunch been funded by any of the funders being reviewed? Does this represent any conflict of interest?

A. GrantAdvisor UK started in the UK with funding from Joseph Rowntree Charitable Foundation and Indigo Trust. It now has funding from Joffe Charitable Trust, Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, City Bridge Trust, Paul Hamlyn Foundation, Yapp Charitable Trust and Tudor Trust. Each of these funders supports GrantAdvisor UK's mission and they do not receive preferential treatment in any way.

Q. I have a different question. How can I get in touch?

A. You can complete this form, or email us at grantadvisor@wearecast.org.uk and we’ll be sure to get back to you.