The summary budget should be entered directly into the online concept note form.  The form has been designed to capture the information we require to assess individual projects and therefore needs to be uniform to facilitate this assessment.  

At concept note stage applicants can download the detailed budget template in excel format.  This document does not need to be submitted at concept note stage, however applicants can use this template to prepare their summary budgets.

At full application stage applicants must complete, and upload, the detailed budget template in excel.  

The following important considerations should be made when completing the budget:

• ​The budget should be submitted in Euros (€). You must also state the currency that you have used in preparing your budget and the value of any exchange rate assumptions you have used to calculate your budget in Euros in the relevant part of the budget section. We would recommend that you use the Financial Times to identify exchange rates. Where expenditures will be in local currencies, it will be important to tell us how you will manage currency exchange risks where exchange markets are volatile and how, in turn, you will prepare your financial statements in EUR when expenditures are in other currencies.    
• The budget should be in line with the narrative of the proposal. The template requests costing information across the functional activities of a Networking organisation that are required as part of the grant (as well as additional specified activities where relevant) and should also indicate the level of resources allocated to coalition members (again if relevant).
• The budget should detail the full amount of the funding being requested and as such the total should match the budget details provided in the online form.  
• All sources of funding should also be identified, including but not exclusively, applicant contributions, other donor contributions and income derived from project activities;
• It is anticipated that income derived (e.g. user fees, bank interest receivable) would be re-invested in the project;
• Budget estimates should be realistic. Often projects of this nature can be too ambitious initially leading to over-estimates in budgets and excessive levels of under-spend as projects progress;
• The budget should include sufficient detail to justify the budget estimates and therefore a breakdown of cost items may also be required to fully explain your assumptions, approach and calculations in the notes section provided. For example, a single staff costs budget line should be broken down into different grades of staff, numbers of FTE and staff costs, such as: Project Manager (0.8 Full Time Equivalent (FTE)) €20,000; Project Officers (2 FTE) €15,000. For ‘Other’, the budget should provide details of the costs of each itemised expense;
• It should be noted that applicants should complete all activities within 2 years of signing of the grant agreement. Disbursement of Network grant funds will be on a quarterly basis.

The template includes the following worksheets to be completed:

• ‘Network Grant – Summary Budget’ –an overview of costs allocated across the four functional activities should be provided. (with allocation across the additional activities and core-funding where relevant)
• ‘Network Grant – Detailed Budget’ – detailed costing information should be provided including quantitative and unit cost information; individual cost categories and budget profile over the two years.
• ‘Notes to accompany budget’ – detailed notes should also be provided to explain budget lines. The Fund manager is focused on ensuring that grant-funded organisations offer good value for money and that all items included in budgets contribute to the delivery of the key functions of the Network grant. As a result, detailed budget notes for each project budget line should be provided. This could include justification for the expenditure and the basis of the estimate.

The detailed costings are split into three broad categories and then within each of these a number of sub-categories are identified. This is explained further in the table below: 

Cost per unit/cost drivers 

• Measurement unit
  The name/ type of unit being purchased e.g. staff, training courses, computers. This may not be applicable in all instances.
• Quantity
  The number of units being purchased
• Unit Cost
  The average cost of the individual units purchased
• Total Cost
  Quantity x Unit Cost

Cost Categories

• Staff
  Includes only direct project staff costs. Consultancy and contractor costs should be included under ‘Technical Assistance’. Ensure that you include all the relevant costs applicable to the staff member (i.e. not just a basic salary). Detailed breakdown should be provided in the notes
• Facilities/ Equipment
  Capital costs directly related to the functional activity.
• Accommodation/ Admin Costs
  All items of accommodation and administrative costs directly related to the functional activity, such as heat, light, power, cleaning etc.
• Technical Assistance
  Refers to specialist input required from consultants and contractors to meet a specific need that cannot be met from within the applicants organisation
• Travel
  All travel costs directly related to the functional activity. Include costs for consultants travel allowances if relevant.
• Other (e.g. Audit Fees, Training)
  Includes a wide range of other costs not specifically categorised above. Full details of the make-up of these costs, along with justification should be provided in the notes section of the template

Budget Profile

• A quarterly profile of expenditure over the 2 year project period should be provided.

The following items should not be included in the AmplifyChange Network Grant budget costs:

• Land purchase;
• Major capital expenditure cannot be supported as the primary focus of the proposed initiative.
• Inflation must not be included as a stand-alone cost in a separate budget line. Typically we would expect inflation costs to be incorporated into the overall cost projects, however we would expect the inflation assumptions to be highlighted in the supporting notes and justified using authoritative sources;
• Contingency/ unforeseen costs arising during the project implementation should not be included in the analysis as a separate item in the budget;
• Depreciation is a bookkeeping transaction rather than an actual cost and should not be included.
• Debt Repayment.
• Pre-project implementation costs such as costs incurred in preparing the project application e.g. design costs, baseline surveys etc. should not be included. 

If you are unsure about the inclusion/ exclusion of any cost item please send your query to: oliver.hough@manniondaniels.com