Chasing funds for community and voluntary organisations is one of my major pre-occupations. I worked in the public sector for twenty five years and the Voluntary Sector for over fifteen years. I have applied for every form of public funding going, including European Funding (assisted by a short spell working as an appraiser of ERDF schemes in a Government Office). The funding landscape has changed dramatically with the growth of competitive tendering and the need to evidence need and impact to many potential funders. However there are still many sources of funding to be tapped into by community and voluntary groups. My major success this year (2011) was obtaining over £490000 from the Big Lottery for Youth Work in East Salford. A success on this scale can only be described as a team effort but if you need support or advice in bidding for funds contact me.