Welcome to Episode 5 of the school development podcast, presented by Simon Lerwill, chair of .
This time around, Simon meets Lesley Dowdall, director of development at in Manchester, UK.
The pair discuss why it is important to show the impact of fundraising and development efforts to different groups of people, including donors, potential donors, staff, parents and school colleagues.
They look at the importance of using data, but also the effectiveness of real-life stories to help people understand and be inspired by fundraising projects.
They talk about the importance of communicating impact to internal stakeholders as well as those from outside of school.
Lesley, who worked in fundraising at the University of Manchester for nearly 20 years, also compares working in the schools sector to working on university development campaigns.
Perhaps most importantly, they discuss how getting out and talking to people can be more important than presenting people with finely-honed plans and immaculate brochures.
They conclude that it is often better to give donors and prospective donors the chance to help shape a plan and become more invested in it.
The IDPE’s Celebration of Giving lasts all this week (November 18 to 22). Visit their website .
