Throughout July 2020, we put together an initial programme designed to support organisations in meeting the increasing demands for digital transformation against the backdrop of the pandemic. The programme specifically focused on organisations supporting people and communities experiencing disproportionate challenge and difficulty as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, and those providing services and support for vulnerable people, for which there was an increase in demand as a result of the pandemic. We wanted to:
The fund - called Catalyst and The National Lottery Community Fund COVID-19 Digital Response - was a partnership between The National Lottery Community Fund and the Centre for The Acceleration of Social Technology (CAST), supported by the Catalyst network. All funds were held by CAST as the legal entity incubating Catalyst.
The initial programme launched on 19th August 2020 - and evolved as the situation developed; all details are in this handbook.
Catalyst and The National Lottery Community Fund COVID-19 Digital Response launched on 19th August 2020, with two programmes available: Discovery (four weeks in duration; one start date available) and Development (ten weeks in duration; two start dates available: one for those grantees who felt ready to enter Development immediately, and another for selected grantees who had been accepted onto and completed the Discovery programme).
All programme information was hosted on the Catalyst website, which featured an eligibility quiz, via which applicants could check whether they were able to apply, and access relevant support resources.
Funding was a mixture of direct grants and payment for support from digital agencies. Procurement of agencies and partners was managed through an Open Projects portal, whereby experts responded to briefs posted on behalf of charities.
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