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If your organization is eligible and your request falls within our granting guidelines, consider forwarding a Letter of Inquiry to us and share how your idea can make a difference.
A Letter of Inquiry is written in the form of a letter and outlines your idea and the amount
of support you are seeking to see if it is something we might consider. Letters of Inquiry need not be more than 3 pages.
Letters of inquiry must be accompanied by a
letter of inquiry cover page
- letters received without this cover page
will be returned without being reviewed.
What to Include:
The purpose of a Letter of Inquiry is to provide the necessary information to assist us in determining whether we should pursue your inquiry further. You may wish to consider using the questions below as a guide:
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Who
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- are you?
- will benefit?
- are your partners?
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What
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- is your idea?
- are you expecting to happen as a result?
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When
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- will it happen?
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Where
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- will it happen?
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Why
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- this particular approach?
- now?
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How
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- will it make a difference?
- much do you expect it to cost?
- much are you requesting?
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Remember to attach the Community Grants Program Letter of Inquiry Cover Page to your request.
Please note: Attachments are not required. We will be in touch if we require further information.
When to submit:
Letters of Inquiry are accepted at any time through-out the year and are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Only one Letter of Inquiry should be submitted from your organization within a 6-month period. Please ensure adequate time between submitting your Letter of Inquiry and the time you actually need the grant.
Where to submit:
Please mail three (3) copies of your organization’s Letter of Inquiry to the:
Edmonton Community Foundation
Community Grants Program
9910 103 St NW
Edmonton, AB T5K 2V7
As we require original signatures we are unable to accept emailed or faxed Letters of Inquiry.
Our Review Process
If accepted, Letters of Inquiry proceed through a three phase review process that includes:
- Proposal Development
- Proposal Review & Consultation
- Proposal Evaluation & Recommendations
Throughout our review process, we consider community need and impact, initiative viability, cost effectiveness of budget, monitoring and evaluation, organizational capacity and fiscal accountability. The review is conducted in partnership with our Board of Directors, community volunteers and foundation staff.
The review process may also include consultation with other funders, requests for further information and site visits. From start to finish, the review process takes approximately 3 months.
All grant decisions are made by the Board of Directors of the Foundation and are final.
Please note, we are unable to expedite grant decisions and we cannot cover any costs incurred before a granting decision is reached.
A Few Tips to Remember
When preparing your Letter of Inquiry remember to: use plain language; mention other potential or actual funders; be clear and concise; stay within the three page limit; focus on your idea; have someone else proof-read and provide feedback.
What You Can Expect
We will be in touch with you within 2-3 weeks of receiving your organization’s Letter of Inquiry. If we are interested in pursuing your organization’s idea further, we may ask you to develop a more detailed proposal. If this is the case, we will provide you with the necessary details for completing a proposal and timelines for submission.
Remember, we receive far more requests than we are able to support at any one time and a decision not to support does not necessarily reflect on the merit of the request. We encourage you to contact us for more specific feedback about your request if your Letter of Inquiry is declined.
Please note that a request to submit a proposal made as part of the review process is not a guarantee of a grant. Proposals received that we have not requested will be returned.
Building Relationships Over Time
We believe that receiving a grant is just the beginning of our relationship with your organization. We build relationships with community organizations through regular contact, sharing of information and dialogue. If your organization is awarded a grant, together we will:
- Draft and sign a Memorandum of Understanding that clearly outlines our respective roles and expectations; and
- Be in touch at different times throughout the duration of your grant to see how things are going.
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