A simple grant pipeline for small charities

A grant pipeline should answer one question quickly: what needs attention next?

If it cannot show the next deadline, the responsible person and the latest decision, it is an archive rather than a working pipeline. Small charities do not need dozens of fields. They need a shared process that survives busy weeks, annual leave and staff changes.

Use stages that reflect real decisions

Start with a short set of stages:

1. Discovered — potentially relevant, not checked.
2. Checking eligibility — mandatory rules and source links under review.
3. Eligible / prioritised — passed the rules and worth the effort.
4. Drafting — application work has started.
5. Submitted — confirmation and final documents retained.
6. Decision due — waiting, with a follow-up date if the funder gives one.
7. Awarded / active — agreement, delivery and reporting obligations tracked.
8. Unsuccessful / closed — outcome and useful learning recorded.

You may combine stages, but each stage should have a clear entry condition. “Eligible” should mean the mandatory checks have evidence, not that somebody likes the opportunity.

Keep the minimum useful fields

For every live opportunity, capture:

• funder and programme;
• source URL;
• charity or project applying;
• requested amount or range;
• application deadline, including time;
• owner;
• current stage;
• next action and its due date;
• eligibility decision and unresolved questions;
• key documents;
• submission reference;
• expected decision date, if published; and
• reporting dates and award restrictions after success.

The next action is the most important field. “Work on application” is too vague. “Finance to confirm salary allocation by Thursday” can be owned and completed.

Separate deadlines

One opportunity can have several dates:

• internal go-or-no-go decision;
• question deadline for the funder;
• first-draft review;
• trustee or senior approval;
• external submission;
• expected decision;
• project start and end;
• interim reports; and
• final report.

Do not put all of these into one cell called “deadline”. Set internal dates early enough to absorb a missing document, illness or a portal problem. Record the funder's time zone and avoid planning to submit in the final minutes.

Run a short weekly review

Try a focused 20–30 minute pipeline review:

1. Look first at overdue next actions.
2. Choose a forward horizon, such as four to six weeks, and review every deadline inside it.
3. Resolve opportunities stuck at “checking”.
4. Confirm that drafting work has an owner and reviewer.
5. Update submitted decisions and active reporting dates.
6. Close work you have consciously decided not to pursue.

The meeting should change owners, dates or decisions. If it only reads out the list, shorten it.

Record why you stopped

Closed opportunities are valuable when the reason is structured:

• ineligible organisation type;
• geography mismatch;
• excluded cost;
• insufficient delivery capacity;
• weak strategic fit;
• timetable impossible;
• application effort not proportionate; or
• funder decision.

This helps future research and prevents a colleague reopening the same unsuitable fund without context. Keep the wording factual and do not treat a past rejection as proof that the charity will always be ineligible.

Connect the award to delivery

The pipeline should not end at “won”. When a grant is awarded:

• attach or link the signed agreement;
• record whether funds are restricted;
• create delivery and reporting milestones;
• name the budget owner;
• record what changes require prior approval; and
• schedule a close-out review.

That bridge between fundraising and delivery reduces the chance of a commitment disappearing into an inbox.

Avoid spreadsheet traps

A spreadsheet can work well at small scale. Problems appear when:

• multiple copies become the unofficial source of truth;
• cells contain unexplained colours or initials;
• deadlines are stored as text;
• links and attachments live in personal folders;
• there is no history of why a stage changed; or
• only one person understands the layout.

If you use a spreadsheet, protect the header, use controlled stage names, store real dates, link the evidence and write a short data dictionary. The tool matters less than consistent ownership.

Membrs provides an Eligible Pipeline, deadline and reporting tracking, and source-linked eligibility checks. Its pipeline guide and deadline guide explain the in-product workflow.

The goal is not a perfectly full board. It is a smaller set of well-owned opportunities moving through explicit decisions.