More than £6bn worth of open data released in last quarter of 2017

Seven more grantmakers have joined the #GreaterGrantsData movement by publishing their data to the 360Giving Standard, bringing the total value of open data to more than £17bn.

It includes a major milestone – for the first time central government data has been released from the Department for Transport and the Ministry of Justice to a value of £4bn. The government issued a statement confirming the data release.

Sport England, which is delivering the government’s strategy for a more active nation, receiving funding from the Exchequer and the National Lottery, has also published more than £2bn worth of data on more than 15,000 grants going back to 2009.

Allison Savich, Sport England Strategic Lead on Data & Market Innovation, says the move demonstrates their commitment “to open data for the longevity and success of our sector”.

“Open data has been shown to spark innovation and we are excited about the prospect of others accessing and using our grant data to make more informed decisions as well as helping organisations seeking funding to make more targeted applications for the benefit of getting people active,” she says. You can read more about Sport England’s engagement with 360Giving here.

The Robertson Trust, the largest independent trust in Scotland that is working to realise the potential of people and communities there, has released data on more than 1,500 grants worth more than £43m going back to 2015.

Lesley Macdonald, Head of Giving at the trust, said: “The Robertson Trust is committed to supporting increased transparency in grantmaking and we are pleased to make our own data available on 360Giving.

“By sharing grant information in a standardised way, funders are not only helping those seeking funding, but also increasing their own potential to target resources more effectively based on comprehensive data of the current funding landscape.

“In order to maximise this potential we feel it’s important that as many organisations as possible, both charitable foundations and statutory funders, sign up to the 360Giving Standard.”

Lankelly Chase, the foundation working for long lasting solutions to social disadvantage, has released data on 167 grants worth more than £12m going back to 2014.

Oliver French, Programme Manager for Equalities and Rights, says in his blog: “For all that we might talk about our strategy development and our emerging work as a foundation which sees itself as an active partner rather than ‘just’ a funder, we recognise that where our money goes is probably the simplest signal of what we’re up to. So we’re happy and interested to make this information as open as possible.”

Somerset Community Foundation joins several other community foundations by releasing data on 225 grants worth almost £0.5m between 2014 and October 2017.

Justin Sargent, the foundation’s Chief Executive, says: “Somerset Community Foundation creates vibrant and inclusive communities by supporting the vitally important work of local charities and voluntary groups within Somerset through grantmaking. We are delighted to join the 360Giving initiative, which provides a great way of sharing information to both donors and applicants about the opportunities that are available in our county and beyond.”

Oxford City Council, the second UK city council to release data using the 360Giving Standard, has shared 105 grants worth over £1 million going back to 2014.

David Growcott, Communities Team Manager, says: “Oxford City Council is committed to transparency in its grant making process and sharing data in a standard format is an excellent way to do this. We hope it will also help organisations to target their applications more effectively.”

All the data published can be explored in GrantNav, alongside data from over 60 other funders.

If you’d like to publish your grants data we can support you every step of the way. Get in touch by emailing support@threesixtygiving.org.