The Institute of Fundraising is seeking the funding for its “demand-led” think tank, which it plans to launch first as a website collating existing fundraising research.

In a document circulated by the Institute, the fundraising umbrella body estimates that the first phase of the project will cost £100,000 and last two years.  It will involve the creation of a website signposting users to, and allowing user reviews of, existing research.

The cost will cover the salaries of a project manager and web developer over the two years, with marketing costs being absorbed by the Institute itself.

Lindsay Boswell, chief executive of the Institute, said that the organisation “will look anywhere” for funding, but has not yet started making grant applications.

The Institute is not yet sure how much funding it would need when the think tank begins commissioning, in year three, Boswell said, adding that first it will conduct a needs analysis.

Boswell said that the Institute has always been clear that setting up the centre is not one of its core funding priorities and that the think tank will never take any money out of Institute coffers. “We will only drive this forward once and if we’ve got funding,” he said.

He was, however, very confident that funding would be secured.

There is no firm time frame for the commencement of the building of the site or the appointment of individuals to the board which will oversee research, Boswell said.

Think tank priorities

While the first stage of the research centre will focus on bringing together existing research, after that the Institute will focus on commissioning research on general market data, donor behaviour, the external environment and stewardship and retention.

The Institute hopes that the centre will reduce duplication of research, plug gaps in the current literature and provide a one-stop-shop for fundraisers looking for research in the future.

The Institute embarked on plans to develop its own research centre after Boswell resigned from the board of the Centre for Charitable Giving and Philanthropy in December, complaining of a lack of relevance to and consultation with the profession.