The Cabinet Office and Nesta today announce the second round of the £10m Innovation in Giving Fund, which aims to find and back innovative ideas for increasing levels of volunteering and charitable giving.

Following the successful first round, which backed 'game-changing' ideas to increase giving, the second round will include a search for established charities that want to use their expertise, networks, assets and capabilities to find new ways to engage people in giving. 

Examples like the National Trust's support for Landshare* show the potential that comes from combining ground-breaking new models with the scale of established charities.  Over the next year, Nesta will support a group of medium and large charities with national reach to increase their impact through adopting and integrating innovations that support their mission.  Approximately 10 charities will be selected to receive a share of £1.5m.

Minister for Civil Society Nick Hurd said, "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."

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."

The Innovation in Giving Fund was launched in September 2011 by Nick Hurd, Minister for Civil Society as part of a £34million package to increase levels of social action. It is managed by Nesta, the UK's innovation agency and aims to back innovative ideas for increasing volunteering and charitable giving.

£2.45million has already been awarded to 31 organisations that have developed game-changing innovations that have the potential to deliver a significant increase in giving and exchange of time, assets, skills, resources and money technology-based ideas. These include The Good Gym, a community enterprise that connects people who want to get fit, with physical tasks that need to be done in the community, and The DoNation, an online platform that offers an alternative to sponsoring people money, instead allowing them to donate by pledging to do socially useful tasks.  A second call for more game-changing ideas will be announced in May. 

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Notes to editors:

The Innovation in Giving Fund is one of a number of new policies announced in the Giving White Paper in May 2011. For further information please see: http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/resource-library/giving-white-paper 

For further information, please contact Jan Singleton on 020 7438 2606/ [email protected] or Guy Bilgorri on 020 7438 2611/ [email protected] 

About Nesta

Nesta is the UK's innovation foundation. We help people and organisations bring great ideas to life. We do this by providing investments and grants and mobilising research, networks and skills.

We are an independent charity and our work is enabled by an endowment from the National Lottery.

Nesta Operating Company is a registered charity in England and Wales with a company number 7706036 and charity number 1144091. Registered as a charity in Scotland number SC042833. Registered office: 1 Plough Place, London, EC4A 1DE

www.nesta.org.uk   

*Landshare brings together people who have a passion for home-grown food, connecting those who have land to share with those who need land for cultivating food. As part of this project, in February 2009 the National Trust pledged to create 1,000 new allotments on Trust land by 2012. They reached this target in September 2011.  For more info: http://www.landshare.net/