More impact, less admin: how ActionFunder helped Get Living scale giving and empower local voices.
The Challenge
Neighbourhood-creator and pioneer in the build-to-rent sector Get Living, needed a way to apply its group-wide ESG strategy through local partnerships across multiple neighbourhoods.
They were seeking a solution that could provide central oversight while also enabling authentic local engagement.
They wanted to find a resource efficient way to manage community funding across the business with limited internal resource, as well as ensuring a more cohesive and reportable approach to how local funding was awarded and invested, and the impact this has.
The Solution
ActionFunder offered Get Living a centralised, resource-light platform that made it easy to launch, manage, and grow local funds. The partnership began with a pilot and scaled rapidly to cover six neighbourhoods, with plans for a seventh underway.
They also worked together to create a voting tool to enable residents to have a say in how community funding is awarded.
“ActionFunder has enabled us to scale our community giving [across six neighbourhoods] with minimal increase to internal resource. It’s given us a consistent, transparent process for supporting grassroots projects, while empowering local teams to shape funding decisions that reflect the needs and passions of their communities.”
— Donna McKitterick-Everest, Director of ESG, Get Living
Key features that supported this growth include:
- Centralised fund setup with devolved local decision-making
- ActionFunder-facilitated judging panels that bring in multiple viewpoints and ensure no single person holds decision-making power
- A voting tool, co-developed with Get Living, to enable resident engagement
- The ability to flag volunteer opportunities, encouraging staff and resident participation
This structure allowed the business to scale without significantly increasing the internal workload. Local teams were empowered to run the funds, while the ESG team maintained oversight, strategic consistency and access to reporting metrics.
“These pots seem to make a real difference to smaller, grassroots organisations. They have the passion, and we can support them with funding and visibility – together we’re delivering real, visible change.”
The Business Benefits
- Efficient scaling: Seamless scaling from one to six neighbourhoods with minimal increase to internal resource.
- Visibility: A single, centralised view of multiple, locally managed funding pots, giving stakeholders real-time oversight of community investment activity.
- Devolved grant-making: a system that allows Neighbourhood Managers and residents to participate in the decision-making, enabling local input.
- Resident & employee engagement: Voting tools and the ability to flag volunteering opportunities within potential grantees have been key engagement tools.
- Governance: A consistent, transparent process for decision-making across all sites, reinforcing accountability and trust.
- Reporting: Built-in support for GRI standards and robust audit trails, helping satisfy annual reporting and compliance requirements.
Community Impact
- 14 funds launched across 6 neighbourhoods
- Over £280,000 total funds invested
- 43 projects funded
- 14,810 estimated beneficiaries
Want to find out how ActionFunder can revolutionise your grant giving? Book a demo today
