There are a large number of sources of high quality information about this subject which can help small, medium and large third sector organisations work out the best approaches to acquiring the right kind of corporate support. Organisations such as Directory of Social Change, Business in the Community, The Charity Commission and HM Treasury all have useful resources.

Links to them, and others, are provided in the Resources section. You will also find more information in the section of this site that focuses on non-money support.

Companies give to charities for a number of reasons. These include:

• creating local goodwill
• boosting staff morale
• associate themselves with certain causes as part of a marketing strategy
• responding to appeals

The good news is that larger firms are increasingly devolving their budgets for spending on community projects to local areas and local voluntary and community organisations. At the same time companies are becoming more proactive in their support – setting their priorities well in advance and choosing the causes they will support, rather than simply responding to requests from groups.

Accepting a few tins of paint from a company can be a great help to a small organisation but corporate support can be a much greater undertaking for larger groups, one that should only be entered into when all the implications have been carefully thought through.

Major national charities have benefited from the trend in ‘Cause Related Marketing’, where companies provide support in return for being associated with the charity. But local voluntary and community organisations are less likely to get funding from large national companies – except where there is a strong geographical, personal or product link.

Third sector organisations can see the benefits of corporate support from their own perspective, but why does a commercial company get involved? Understanding this puts a third sector organisation in a much stronger position when entering into a joint arrangement. HM Treasury has produced a guide for companies considering offering corporate support -
third sector organisations will find this useful to look through to be clear about what commercial companies are looking for in such an arrangement.

The Charities Commission has developed a range of resources that explain the potential advantages and disadvantages of entering into a relationship with commercial partners.