The second round of the £10m Innovation in Giving Fund was announced today by the Cabinet Office and Nesta, with the focus this time on inspiring innovation in established charities.

Whilst the first round focused on new ideas to increase giving, the second round calls for “established charities that want to use their expertise, networks, assets and capabilities to find new ways to engage people in giving”.

This time ten or so medium and large charities will be chosen for a cut of £1.5m to then be supported by Nesta to carry out their aims.  

Chief executive of Nesta, Geoff Mulgan, said: “In the first round we’ve already backed some brilliantly imaginative new ideas and start-ups. But we now also want to tap into the great strengths of existing medium and larger-sized charities that can take innovative approaches to a larger scale. That will be crucial for our bigger goal of raising the amount of both time and money that’s given in this country.”

Minister for civil society Nick Hurd added: “This fund is about supporting creative new ideas that will inspire more people to give time or money. I was very impressed by the quality of the first round and this next round is another chance to let some great ideas fly.”

The Innovation in Giving Fund was launched back in September 2011, its aim being to find and back innovative ideas for increasing levels of volunteering and charitable giving, as part of a £34m package to increase levels of social action. 

The first round of funding was allocated in February this year when 15 awards were announced, and a further 16 came in late March, with a total of £2.45m dished out amongst the 31 projects.

Recipients of the first round included Guess2Give, a sweepstake platform for runners of charity marathons or other timed events; Do-it Connect, a UK volunteer database; and Greeniversity, which teaches people ‘green skills’.