Policies, Documents & Fundraising
Raising support and money to be able to plan and plant a new orchard and then maintain it can take a lot of work. Most worthwhile sources will want to see a well-thought out and viable proposition, assurance that the project will be competently managed and evidence that the wider 'outcomes' have been considered. Some will also require that the management team have formal policies in place covering the project's interaction with the public in all its guises. Understanding, or finding guidance on, what these should contain can be time-consuming in itself.
We had support from many organisations including The National Trust and its Orchard Network initiative. The latter asked us about our approach to fundraising for inclusion in their case study. As a convenient summary of how we went about this, it is provided below:
You can find the Orchard Network and their case study in context at www.orchardnetwork.org.uk.
Many of our grant applications covered similar topics. One of the most comprehensive was for Local Food and our draft responses to their key questions are included here as examples:
We have also included below examples of some of the main supporting documents that may well be required:
- Constitution
- Environmental Policy
- Health and Safety Policy
- Equal Opportunities Policy
- Management Experience Summary
- Wider Outcomes
All this information is provided only for interest and as a guide for those considering similar initiatives, it is not necessarily kept up-to-date. While you are welcome to use it, an acknowledgement of the source would be welcome. Please note that the St James Village Orchard accepts no responsibility for its use by others.