How To Write Support Letters That Get You Funding.

Support letters are one of the most important documents your organisation can have. While your grant application speaks to your project and the impact you plan to have, your support letters show your organisation’s proven ability to deliver. They speak on the capabilities of your staff, your organisation’s integrity, and your proven commitment to your community. If a funder is on the fence about your application, a support letter could be your saving grace. With this in mind, let’s go over what a support letter is, how to write one, and some top tips. 

What is a support letter? 

A support letter is a vote of confidence for your organisation. It is when your organisation approaches another community organisation, and asks them for a statement affirming the hard work your organisation is doing. They are usually short (1-2 paragraphs), and detail a project you did for, or with, the organisation that is writing the letter. Their purpose is to confirm your organisation’s reputation, and show that you are a good investment. 

How do I write one? 

When it comes to support letters, there are a few best practices that funders like you to follow. The letter must be written on the writing organisation’s letterhead, dated at the time of writing, and signed.

 For the actual body of the letter, keep it nice and simple. Begin with a formal greeting, before giving a brief overview of the history between your two organisations. Have you been working together for years, or just this specific occasion? 

Then, move into a short statement on the organisation’s ability to deliver. This is where you will mention any projects you have worked on together recently in more detail, and state how the organisation handled this. Were they professional to work with? Did they seem committed to your community? 

Lastly, you want to endorse their request for funding, and state how you believe them receiving this funding will benefit your community. This seems daunting, but can be summed up in a few sentences by answering two questions: do you support their request for more funding, and do you believe they will do good for your community with this funding. You do not need to go into extensive detail on this, as you likely won’t know exactly what the funding is for, but you do need to clearly state your support. 

End with a closing statement, your signature, name, and title at your organisation, and you’ve got a complete support letter! 

Top tips 

Here’s our top tips for writing support letters: 

Include them with documents you send to funding specialists. Organisations never forget to send us their deposit slips, but they do forget their support letters! Make sure you include at least two with the usual documents you send to people who submit grants on your organisation’s behalf. 

Ideally, have the writing organisation be working in the same space as you. If the writing organisation does similar work to your organisation, it makes their opinion even more valuable. There is no one better to vouch for you than someone who does similar work to you, as they understand the needs of the people you work with better than anyone else. If you work in a unique space, someone you have provided your services to would also work perfectly – for example; if you provide a certain service to schools, have principals or teachers of schools you’ve worked with write support letters for you. 

Update your support letters regularly. Some funders have a limit on how old a support letter can be for it to be considered valid. Ask if the writing organisation is comfortable to loop back annually and refresh the dates, or write you a new letter. Make sure you are regularly asking organisations that you work with for a support letter to keep on file. 

Let your team know the value of support letters. Ask your team about any feedback they get while out in the community. Usually, if you reach out to people who give you good feedback, they are more than happy to provide a letter of support. This can be as simple as sending a quick email saying “Thank you so much for letting us know our work was impactful. Would you mind putting your feedback on a letterhead and attaching your signature so we can use your comments to help us apply for funding to continue our work?” You could also get your team to ask for one directly while they’re working with the organisation.

Reciprocate. Spread the love and write support letters for other organisations. If you have validated an organisation's hard work, they are likely to want to validate yours too. 

Support letters are an absolute asset to your organisation when written well. Make sure that you collect them regularly, follow best practices and our top tips, and your organisation will stand out as a great investment.