Grant Sustainability & Exit Plan Builder 2025
Funders expect programmes to endure beyond their grant. Use this builder to show how you will sustain or responsibly wind down activity while protecting beneficiaries and knowledge.
TL;DR
- Map costs, dependencies, and potential new income streams within one dashboard.
- Document exit scenarios to reassure trustees and funders that impact is protected.
- Feed sustainability actions into the change control playbook and trustee oversight pack.
Why sustainability plans matter in 2025
The National Lottery Community Fund and the Arts Council England Delivery Plan 2024-26 both emphasise sustainability and exit planning. Demonstrating how you will replace income or responsibly wind down reduces risk for funders and strengthens future bids.
Sustainability & exit canvas
Use this one-page canvas (adaptable in Notion or Miro) to capture the essentials.
- Programme snapshot: Objectives, beneficiaries, current cost per outcome.
- Income strategy: Grants, contracts, earned income, reserves, philanthropy.
- Cost optimisation: Efficiency opportunities, shared services, technology.
- Exit triggers: Scenarios that trigger wind-down and mitigation steps.
- Knowledge transfer: How learning is captured in the onboarding sprint and storybank.
Action plan and owners
Convert canvas insights into a live action tracker linked to your reporting calendar. Assign owners for funding bids, commercial pilots, partnership negotiations, or closure tasks. Review progress monthly in the trustee oversight meeting.
Communication with funders and partners
Share headline sustainability milestones in funder updates and include a summary in your variation requests. Create beneficiary comms templates so stakeholders understand transition plans.
Next steps and downloads
Download the sustainability canvas, action tracker, and stakeholder comms template. Upload them to Crafty to reuse across bids.
Action plan
- Complete a sustainability canvas for each live grant this quarter.
- Schedule review slots in your pipeline and trustee meetings.
- Store plans in Crafty so AI-generated drafts cite them automatically.
Key takeaways
- Funders reward organisations that plan for sustainability and responsible exits.
- Use structured canvases and action trackers to coordinate finance, delivery, and partnerships.
- Integrate plans with Crafty workflows for consistent messaging.
Summary and next steps
Sustainability planning protects beneficiaries and funders. Build the plan, track actions, and keep Crafty updated so every proposal and report demonstrates credibility.
- Populate the sustainability canvas for current grants.
- Review progress quarterly with trustees and delivery leads.
- Update Crafty prompts and evidence as milestones are met.