18th January 2014

BRIEFING: LAUNCHING THE BRIXTON COMMUNITY LOTTERY

The Background The Brixton Pound (B) is Brixtons local currency. Now four years old it is well established, but it needs to reach more users to create a truly sustainable business model. The team at the B have identified a solution that will help us to meet this challenge: a community lottery programme which pays out prizes in B, helps to sustain the B, and raises money for good causes in the local area. On the one hand the lottery will get more Bs in circulation and create a revenue stream that will help make it self-financing. On the other hand it will generate a community fund, which will make small grants available to local groups or social enterprises with great ideas who lack the scale or knowledge to apply for traditional grants. The Challenge The initial reaction to the community lottery idea has been very positive, and funding is in the pipeline to help the B get the idea off the ground. However, to secure this funding we need Made In Lambeths help in two key areas: 1. to develop a compelling brand name, visual identity and marketing ideas for the lottery: our community lottery needs a brand name, identity and set of marketing ideas that captures the imagination of local people, encourage them to take part, and highlights its broader purpose and outcomes. 2. to design how the money raised is distributed to good causes: we need to design a simple, fair and accessible process for allocating the money the lottery raises, addressing key questions such as a. Who sits on the fund management team? (and for how long?) b. How does the fund attract applications from local groups? c. What criteria are used to award grants? d. How should grantees show evidence they are spending the money wisely? We will be running this mini Made In Lambeth session in the heart of Brixton Village so there will be plenty of people on hand to speak to about our ideas as we develop them over the course of the day. Your Impact By helping the B in these two key areas you help to secure funding to ensure the Lottery is successfully launched. In turn you will helping to create a sustainable business model for the B, as well as to funding dozens of great causes in the area.