Craigmyle’s Christine Buccella: I was recently working with a new client to create the initial budget for a large heritage-focussed capital improvements project. It made me reflect on how, of all of the issues and questions that need to be addressed for a complicated project such as this one, agreeing the project budget is never straightforward.
Setting a fundraising target is not just a matter of deciding what feels achievable. It should follow detailed project planning. And once a target is set, expectations around timescale, risk and delivery need to be addressed from the outset.
These two areas are closely connected and should be considered together.
Setting the target
A fundraising target should start with a comprehensive project budget. That budget needs to include construction costs, professional fees, contingency, inflation, VAT where applicable, and programme costs linked to delivery.
An area that is often underestimated is the cost of getting the project ready for fundraising. Before fundraising can start, organisations usually need to invest in preparatory work. This may include condition surveys, architectural drawings, cost plans, business planning, environmental assessments, community consultation, governance review, fundraising strategy development and preparation of a case for support. These development costs are part of the overall investment required to deliver the project and should be identified early.
Once the project costs have been identified, we typically conduct a feasibility exercise that tests the fundraising potential of the project before a final target is agreed. It identifies possible funding sources, assesses the suitability of the project for each, and estimates a likely grant level or gift range. It also considers client networks, existing donor relationships and statutory opportunities.
Once the costings and the funding landscape are considered together, a realistic target be set. Sometimes the funding potential supports the full scheme. Sometimes it indicates that the project should be scaled back, divided into phases or sequenced over time. In other cases, additional early investment in development work may be needed before approaching major funders.
A fundraising target should reflect:
- A defined and costed project scope
- Inclusion of development and preparatory expenditure
- Evidence from funding feasibility
- Assessment of organisational capacity
- Appropriate contingency
Targets that are not based upon both cost and funding evidence are difficult to sustain.
Managing expectations with the client
Managing expectations is not about lowering ambition. It is about ensuring that the client understands the process, the risks and the timescales involved.
At the outset of a campaign, we produce a fundraising strategy and agree it with the client. This document sets out the income streams to be pursued, the rationale for each, and the sequencing of approaches. It includes a project plan and submission timeline, showing when applications will be prepared and when decisions are expected.
This early clarity is important. It establishes a shared understanding of how the target will be reached and over what period.
We then report monthly. These reports track progress against the agreed plan, record applications submitted and decisions received, and update the overall funding position. They also identify any issues that may affect delivery. This might include delays in project development information, changes in funder criteria, capacity constraints or unsuccessful applications.
Where challenges arise, we set out options. That may involve revising the timetable, adjusting the mix of funders, strengthening certain elements of the case for support or, in some cases, reconsidering phasing.
Regular communication prevents surprises. It also reinforces an important point: fundraising is never guaranteed. No consultant can promise success in every application. What can be guaranteed is disciplined preparation, strategic targeting and consistent effort.
By working in partnership, with transparency about both progress and risk, consultant and client share responsibility for achieving the target. That shared understanding is what sustains confidence over the life of a campaign.
The balance
In practice, setting fundraising targets and managing expectations are part of the same discipline.
A fundraising target that is not properly costed or tested through feasibility is unlikely to succeed. Equally, even a well-constructed target can create difficulty if expectations around timescale, sequencing and risk are not clearly established from the outset.
The organisations that navigate this successfully tend to invest time at the beginning. They commission the necessary development work, test funding potential realistically and agree a funding plan before launching into applications. They understand that fundraising involves uncertainty and that progress depends on preparation, persistence and adjustment where required.
Regular communication underpins this approach. A shared strategy, a clear project plan and consistent reporting ensure that both consultant and client retain oversight of progress and risk. Where circumstances change, decisions are made in response to evidence rather than pressure.
Fundraising is rarely straightforward, particularly in the current climate. However, when targets are based on thorough planning and expectations are managed transparently, campaigns are more resilient and decision-making remains steady.
If you are at the stage of defining a project budget or considering a fundraising target, investing time in this early alignment will support delivery in the longer term.
