The Museum of Bristol Fundraising Strategy

Version 3

Introduction
The Museum of Bristol Fundraising Strategy was first produced in March
2008. This version has been amended in key areas to reflect the current
economic climate and further prospect research by the development team,
which has informed our giving tables and approach. It continues to draw
from Action Planning’s 2007 detailed feasibility study.

The revised goal of the strategy is to raise £2.5m in partnership funding.

The thrust of the strategy remains, as before, to establish a Development
Trust as a registered charity as a fundraising vehicle. Charitable status is
required to apply for funds from the overwhelming majority of grant-making
trusts and foundations, and this is where most funds will come from. Trusts
and foundations provided 67% of Kelvingrove’s appeal total.

Funding will come from:

• Grant-making trusts and foundations

• Wealthy individuals
• Corporate supporters
• A public appeal
• Fundraising by the Friends

“Relationship fundraising” is central to the strategy. Fundraising is the

result of first-class donor and funder care. This means developing effective
relationships with potential funders, both organisations and individuals. It
requires understanding the needs, interests and aspirations of potential
funders and donors. It requires a properly tailored approach. It will enable
the Museum Service to develop an effective, focused fundraising culture
based around long-term sustainable relationships, and this will have benefits
beyond the term of the appeal.

Figures
The development of the Museum of Bristol will cost £26.5m. Heritage
Lottery Fund pledged their support of £11.3m in 2006. A further £12.43m
has been pledged by Bristol City Council. (The agreement through
Section 106 comes from the developers of the commercial and
residential site behind the Museum of Bristol). This brings a total of
£23.73m secured. Therefore, a shortfall of £2.3m, to be raised through the
fundraising campaign, remains. The fundraising costs at 11% have not
been included in the shortfall as these have been underwritten by
Bristol City Council. (See finance table below).
NB – The shortfall has been rounded up to £2.5m in the case for support.

The Fundraising Campaign

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Gifts and pledges secured to date by the fundraising campaign total
£467,500 leaving £2.3m to be raised over the next three years from

• Individuals
• Companies
• Trusts/ foundations
• Statutory sources
• Other areas

A fundraising campaign will be formally launched with the creation of a

Development Trust, provisionally in September 2009. However a period of
warming up and cultivation activity is underway following on from the
feasibility study and previous advocacy work. This strategy outlines how we
will achieve the current shortfall of £2.3m from funding sources outlined
above by the opening of the museum in autumn 2011.

Financing the project

Expenditure £ ‘000s
Breakdown of costs Phase One 1,400
Phase Two 24,761
Fundraising campaign costs 300
TOTAL COSTS 26,461

Income
Breakdown of income Heritage Lottery Fund 11,300
Bristol City Council 10,931
NOTE - Do we lump Section 106 agreement 1,500
these two together?
£12,43
TOTAL INCOME 23,731

Fundraising campaign =TOTAL PROJECT COSTS–TOTAL INCOME 2,770

target
Breakdown of target Less gifts secured to date -467.5

TOTAL SHORTFALL - As at February 2,300

2009

Feasibility study – key recommendations

A feasibility study undertaken in the latter part of 2007 shows that raising the
remaining £2.3m of £2.77m target is reasonable but will be challenging. The

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feasibility study took into account desk-based and on-line research as well as the
findings from face-to-face interviews with likely supporters.

Where will the funding come from £ ‘000s

Breakdown by source Trusts and foundations 1.25
Companies 300
Individuals 500
Statutory sources 180
Friends of BMGA 50
Public appeal 20
TOTAL 2,300

Trusts and Foundations

As the Development Trust will have charitable trust status, trusts and Foundations
are a likely source of income and can provide the bulk of the fundraising target.
Trusts and Foundations support a project because its aims and objectives meet the
grant criteria very specifically or that one (or more) of the trustees has some link
with the project and the charity.

Research has identified 113 trusts to which we can consider applying. These have
been matched on the constituent parts of the project, geographic areas of giving
and further work will need to be done, on recruitment of our trustees, into any links
to the trustees of the Trust or Foundation.

Furthermore other trusts and foundations may come to light during the appeal. If
key relationships are developed it may be possible to increase the level of donations
secured and increase the total raised from this source than that set out in the
feasibility.

Our approach will be:

Major Grant Giving Trusts
• Identifying appropriate trusts to target on basis on constituent parts of
project, for example, learning spaces, gallery spaces, and community and
learning programmes;
• Identifying connections on the trusts trustee board with our development
trustees. Research has already been undertaken to identify networks of
trustee boards and this information is being used to decide on best approach.
• Hosting a number of peer to peer events (mixture of site visits, lunch
meetings, private dinners, drinks reception) for the purpose of cultivating
trustees and involving them more deeply in the project. Again, some events
have already taken place and some site visits are planned for spring 2009.
• On guidance from trustee make a formal application;
• Provide reports on progress of project funded and continue to involve in
development

Small to Medium Charitable Trusts

• As point one above, but timetabling approaches according to trustee
meetings and their deadlines;

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• Making tailored applications on a rolling programme, annually or bi-annually
as appropriate according to guidelines of trust;
• Hosting behind the scenes tours and sending newsletters;
• Reporting and updating on development as part of continued stewardship
programme.

Individuals
Research was conducted by Action Planning as part of the feasibility study and it
was agreed to prospect for 50 names of individuals capable of making a donation in
excess of £5,000. Full details of 51 prospects available in the research report and
gift table. A number of individuals have also been identified through the team
delivering the project. Research has been commissioned on these in line with the
timings of our strategy and the campaign.

The principle of major donor development is to identify a way of approaching the

wealthy person via someone they already know, trust and respect (peer to peer
fundraising). We have already circulated our prospect list amongst our trustees and
senior staff to find an appropriate route to the potential major donor, to commence
cultivation and involvement. This list will be updated in regular prospect meetings.
(Please see Appendix 5 - Prospect Pipeline).

Further, individuals capable of making donation less than £5,000 will be able to
contribute towards the campaign through a variety of mechanisms throughout the
entire period leading to the opening of the Museum. In the private phase it is
recommended to keep this low level, on website, through donation boxes, through
leaflets, but in the public phase will see a higher profile campaign supported by
media activity.

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Companies
Given the history of commerce in Bristol there are many opportunities for significant
corporate sponsorship within elements of the exhibition areas or themes within the
museum. However, it is necessary to look at potential corporate funding in the
light of the current economic recession and to be realistic about the possibility of
some potential corporate funders cutting back on these areas of their business.
Given the economic climate, the fundraising targets have been re-visited and the
focus has shifted from corporate giving to other areas such as trusts and
foundations and statutory funding.

Research has identified 43 companies as potential corporate funders. These include

those based in Bristol and those that have a branch/presence in the city. There will
be three main ways in which a company can work with the museum – through
corporate sponsorship, corporate donations (corporate social responsibility) and
through becoming a member of the planned corporate membership programme.

The Corporate Membership Programme will aim to attract members at three levels
of funding for annual fees of £15,000, £10,000 and £5,000 offering a range of
tailored benefits for each level. These benefits will include discounts on the new
corporate hire facilities, behind- the-scenes tours and employee volunteering
opportunities amongst other things.

Corporate sponsorship of key areas, floors and themes within the museum will be
another main focus of the fundraising campaign. To ensure success in this area it is
important that the content of the museum and the spaces within the museum can
offer links and hooks for potential sponsors. It will also be crucial to offer sponsors
tailored and creative benefits packages and marketing opportunities to fully
maximise the sponsorship opportunity for them.

Corporate Donations (CSR) will need to be linked to the key themes and target
audiences identified for the museum and will need to meet the criteria set by
companies for their corporate social responsibility programmes. A strong case will
need to be made for how we plan to engage with these audiences and how a
company can meet their CSR objectives through involvement with the museum.

Based on our approach (please see appendix 2 – Private Phase 1) and the findings
of the feasibility study we have revised the target and lowered it to £300,000 from
companies (this does not include the £310,000 already secured) and a number of
large donations have been identified as potential opportunities – please see the Gift
table appendix 3 - however it is worth reiterating at this point that key to achieving
gifts at this level will be around how we engage with these prospects identified as
there will inevitably be some risk to fundraising if we are also approaching them for
their input to collections too.

Statutory Sources
Three sources of Landfill Tax Credit Scheme have been identified as possible
sources of funding. Pre-registration with ENTRUST is required prior to making
applications. Further work will need to be done in identifying a prospect or donor
through whom we can attract a third party contribution.

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In addition to the Landfill Tax Credit Schemes we will be approaching MLA for grants
as and when appropriate for the Museum of Bristol.

Finally, Focus Consultants have been appointed to investigate other statutory

funding sources, including EU funds and SWRDA.

Friends Groups
Having spoken to each of the Friends’ groups about their involvement in raising
money for the Service to date we are recommending the following for each:

Friends of Museums, Galleries and Archives

Following the success of the Museum Friends in raising money for the Egypt Gallery
to the complete the re-display we feel it would be reasonable to set them a target
over the next two years to enable us to see the delivery of the Museum of Bristol.

Given the target was £40,000 for the Egypt Gallery we are exploring with the
Museum Friends a challenge of raising £50,000. This could be for a discrete
element of the project, possibly the working exhibits and the workshop space.

Friends of the Art Gallery

In discussion with the Chair and fundraising committee member it has been agreed
that there are many ways in which the Friends of the Art Gallery can get involved.
This includes, inserts in their newsletters, editorial in newsletters, and financial
assistance where appropriate.

Of both groups continued joint working is essential as both groups identify they
need to maintain their fundraising activity for their purposes but neither to the
detriment of the campaign for Museum of Bristol. Quarterly updates at committee
meetings to each of the groups would be a good way forward for maintaining lines
of communication as well as meeting the chairs of each on a similar regular basis.

Strategy for the Capital Appeal

The feasibility report identified three distinct phases for the fundraising campaign
as is traditional with most capital appeals:

• Research and planning

• A Private Phase
• A Public Phase

Research and planning is continuing in order to develop the tools for the basis of
fundraising activity. A timetable for research and approaches has been developed,
and a strategy for utilising the database for prospect management purposes is in
the process of being developed. The private phase will be where the majority of
funds will be secured with the remains during the public phase, with support from a
media campaign.

In summary key to achieving a successful fundraising campaign there are four

elements that can contribute:

• High level volunteers/ trustees – time and networks

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• Senior management involvement
• Behind the scenes opportunities – tours, workshops, one to one meetings, etc
• Experts around the organisation – specialist areas – content, learning, access
etc
• Compelling case for support
• Opportunities to engage with people’s personal affection for the city and
“involve” them with the museum

This will also most importantly include establishing a strong and compelling case for
support with:

• A clear business case for the appeal – why funding and charitable support is
required – written from the perspective of a donor that answers questions
they may raise (as featured in the feasibility study)
• Reasons why a funder should agree to fund or invest in the project
• Transparent costings for the project
• Information on what the creation of this new museum will offer the
beneficiaries of the project i.e. what will the people of Bristol and beyond see
and how will it impact on them
• Expected aims and outcomes of the creation of the project
• Tangible evidence of positive impact MoB will have demonstrable through
educational, social and economic demand and need
• Clarification on the impact MoB will have on CMAG and other sites
• A strong vision, inspiration and imagination
• Agreed core messages
• Distinction from other museums like the Museum of Liverpool

Onward from the feasibility study contact needs to be maintained with the
participants of the study in order to involve and test our plans with them, which it is
intend will also have the result of securing gifts and philanthropic involvement from
these participants.

The research and planning phase will be key to establishing a trustee board/ appeal
committee whom we can work with to generate a network of supporters.

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The Funding Plan
The Museum of Bristol will have established a charitable trust for the purposes of
raising the final sums of £2.3m required to fund the £26.5m project. This target of
£2.3m is seen as reasonable but challenging for a project of this nature given the
field of funds evaluated for an approach.

Research and planning and private phases will run concurrently due to timescales of
the project and part way through the private phase, planning and implementation of
the public phase will begin to take place.

Campaign pledge targets

The following table shows the pledge campaign target totals to be secured during
each phase with timescales attached.

PHASE AND DATES TARGET £ ‘000s

Private phase 1
February 2008 – February 2011 1,975
Focus of activity
Trusts and Foundations
High net worth individuals
Companies

Private phase 2
February 2009
Public appeal planning to
commence

Public phase
November 2010 – Autumn 2011 500
Focus of activity
Public appeal
Trusts and Foundations
High net worth individuals
Companies
TOTAL 2,300,000

Private Phase
Here most of the major lead gifts will be secured, against 2 year timescale. This will
be through personal/ tailored approaches of the trustee board supported by the
Development Team through a programme of approaches to wealthy individuals,
trusts and foundations and companies.

There will be two parts to the private phase – the first identifying and securing a
number of lead partners giving at a higher level and selected for opportunities for
appropriate involvement in the project at this time because of influence to the
project – and particularly those with whom we may only have one opportunity of
securing funding during the timescales of the campaign and because of the
opportunity to influence and take part in developing the content.

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The second phase will be targeting many of those at a lower gift level but with
opportunity to return to them at a later stage and from those whom we have been
building relationships in the first phase.

During the early part of the private phase II, planning and implementation will need
to go into the media/ publicity led public phase.

The goal for the private phase of the fundraising campaign will be £1.975m, broken
down into two elements – the first securing £500,000 by September 2009 with the
bulk of the gifts amounting £1.475m to be secured during the second phase by
February 2011.

Leadership gifts will be sought to achieve the majority of funding during this phase.
Leadership gifts of this size will come from individuals, companies, trusts and
foundations.

Public Phase
This phase will reach out to the entire community and we will seek to engage with
our Friends groups and media partners to enhance our activity. Many smaller
donations will be secured during this phase from the public and community. For this
phase to be successful it will need to be underpinned by a strong media presence to
rally public support. It is estimated we will launch this phase by November 2010.

Activity to support the Fundraising Campaign

Initial ideas have been developed by the Development Managers however further
input is required in discussion with the wider Marketing team to establish how this
might be delivered in context of other marketing activity.

Project Champions/ Patrons

From the feasibility study discussions it was identified a number of individuals who
can talk up the project within the city to various forums – community groups,
donors, media etc etc – they could be part of a media campaign around the project,
host a dinner or event with donors to engage them with the project. These could
include:

Tony Benn Sherie Eugene Tony Robinson Adam Hart-Davis

Nick Park Helen Dunmore Phillippa Gregory Mary Prior

Communications
Web development
Talks programme
Newsletters
Donation form/ gift aid
Campaign brochure
PR for fundraising events

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PR opportunities for donor recognition
PR opportunities around fundraising need
Public appeal – unpinned by media activity
• Press inserts
• Posters
• Warm appeal (database screen)
Collections – collection points at all sites
Factsheets

Events
A number events for small groups of donors, like hard hat tours – scope out how
many looking at prospect pipeline – feasibility people, etc
One – to – ones – dinners, lunches, meetings over coffee
Trustee events – hosted externally tbc, launch event
One or two large donor events – canapé reception or similar – maybe based in
London
Launch of fundraising campaign September 2009
Thank you event - launch of museum Autumn 2011

Database
Further work is needed to understand and develop a strategy around the use of the
database to support fundraising activity and this needs to be developed in
discussion with other users. Issues in particular;
• Greater understanding of needs required by departments using the database
particularly in relation to contact management of wealthy donors
• Consideration of data protection issues relating to warm appeal/ informing
interested parties
• Greater understanding of constituents in database

Research
A prospect list has been drawn up and consists of over 300 names of individuals,
companies, charitable trusts and foundations and statutory bodies to whom we can
approach.

Of this list only 9 are known to the Development Managers as active donors (giving
to the Museum service in the last year) although a number of individuals already
have a relationship with the museum, i.e. attended a launch event or private view.
It is yet to be established if any others have given a donation to the wider service in
the last 20 years. A further 14 prospects were interviewed as part of the feasibility
study and a programme of cultivation has already begun with these people to build
a meaningful relationship for this project.

A gift table has been developed alongside research – this identifies prospects by
size of gift to make up the campaign total.

Donor Recognition
Levels of recognition and outline costs attached are yet to be agreed internally– a
donor recognition document is in draft as an appendices to this document and will

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need final sign off prior to making this first approaches in the private phase of the
campaign.

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