Collaborating with other donors
We aim to collaborate with other funding organisations, including national development agencies, subscription lotteries, philanthropic organisations and individuals, to match-fund initiatives, implement joint programmes, and ensure the scaling up of our funded initiatives by others.
Comic Relief: Levelling the Field programme
In January 2017 we contributed £1.2 million to Comic Relief's Levelling the Field initiative, part of its international Sport for Change programme.
Sport for Change uses sport to help improve the economic wellbeing of women and girls in Malawi, Zambia and Rwanda. Levelling the Field offered funding of up to £150,000 for projects, research, or campaigns designed to increase confidence, build self-esteem and reduce violence against women and girls.
- project report for 2018 to 2019
- project report for 2017 to 2018
- news story: Help for women and girls in Africa
- Comic Relief website
In March 2020, International Development Minister Jenny Gilruth announced a new phase of funding for Levelling the Field Phase II, to build on the success of the first joint programme by supporting organisations that use sport to challenge issues such as violence against women in Malawi, Rwanda and Zambia. It will also increase access to education, employment and training to marginalised women and girls.
Information on Levelling the Field II can be found on the Comic Relief website.
Our partnership on Levelling the Field II completes in financial year 2023 to 2024.
Past collaborations
Since 2012 we have worked with Sport Relief on two different programmes to deliver a legacy from the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.
In 2012 we contributed £2.5 million to Sport Relief's £5 million "Home and Away" fund, which was split equally between 'home' projects, being funded in Scotland, and 'away' projects, being funded in other parts of the Commonwealth. Funding was awarded to four projects, two in Malawi, one in South Africa, and one in Uganda. Sport Relief manages the projects and reports to us on their progress.
In 2014, as the official charity partner of Glasgow 2014, we provided UNICEF with £750,000 that was match-funded by Sport Relief to deliver two projects in Bangladesh and Malawi.