Introduction

We’re pretty sure that you’ve been knee-deep in the Arts Council England NPO funding guidance and application information, relating to the 2028-33 funding period. But if you haven’t seen it yet, take a look here! If you’re considering applying to join ACE’s National Portfolio, it is essential that you check it out.

Because participating in the Impact & Insight Toolkit has been optional for the recent funding round (2023+), there is no direct request for reflections on any Toolkit data you have gathered over recent years. However, there is certainly space for you to include insight and learnings that have been obtained through your participation in the project. Specifically, these opportunities are present in the ‘Previous work and Development’ section of the application form.

How can you demonstrate the excellence of your work?

If you have engaged with quality evaluation via the Toolkit, you may have evidence of where your work has excelled. You certainly will be able to demonstrate the areas of ambition for your organisation, where these have been met, and where there is room for improvement.

Start with your dimensions. These are standardised statements, each focussing on a particular outcome; for example, Originality – ‘It was ground-breaking’.  The respondent provides their agreement level to the statement, thus indicating the extent to which that specific outcome has been achieved.

Your self-selected dimensions show what truly matters to your organisation in your work.  In effect, your dimension selection shows what ‘excellence’ looks like to you, and your results indicate the extent to which you have met your definition of excellence.

For you to say with confidence that your organisation is excelling in an area, consider comparing your results to those achieved by other organisations participating in the project. This can be done through benchmarking via the Reporting Dashboard. When you know how your results compare, and which benchmark you’ve used, you can speak about your achievements with confidence.

Closing Words

Please remember that we are here to support you with analysing and interpreting your Toolkit data, so do get in touch with us if you have any questions as you work through the application process in the weeks ahead.

Featured Image –  Михаил Секацкий on Unsplash