Supporting a thriving voluntary sector: Evaluating the impact of infrastructure funding through the Backbone Fund

Published: 27 February 2023 

This summary highlights the key findings from the 2022 review of the Backbone Fund and offers recommendations for funders and infrastructure organisations.

The Backbone Fund provides long-term, core funding to infrastructure organisations that contribute to the overall health and resilience of the sectors we support. Part of our commitment to civil society and its leaders, the Fund enables key organisations to resource their core services and plan strategically for the long term. 

The Backbone Fund was set up in 2017. To help us understand the Fund’s impact in its first five years, we commissioned an independent evaluation from Nexus Evaluation Ltd. This summary highlights the key findings and offers recommendations for funders and infrastructure organisations. 

In this blog, Holly Donagh, Director, Strategic Learning, Insight and Influence, reflects on how these insights will shape the way we make grants through the Fund going forward.