UnLtd India

1. The purpose for which the grant was made: Financial and non-financial support of ten start-up social entrepreneurs in Mumbai, through UnLtd India’s incubation support programme.

2. Amount of grant: £20,000
Date of receipt: June 2009

3. Can you confirm that the above grant has been spent on the purpose for which it has been given? Yes.
A financial breakdown of how the grant was spent is below:
Description Spent between July 2008-June 2009 (Rs) Spent between July 2008-June 2009 (£)*
Financial support for investees 542,712 6,784
Non-financial support for investees 870,176 10,877
Other office & admin expenditure 187,112 2,339
TOTALS 160,000 20,000
* Items converted from Indian Rupees to Pounds Sterling at the rate of £1 = Rs 80.

4. In the light of experience, do you still regard the purpose for which the grant was made as the right priority to be put forward at the time of the application? Yes

5. Please comment briefly on the value of the grant to your organisation and how it has affected the work you undertake.
Absolutely critical. It is often hard to raise funding for early-stage organisations. The fact that ERSF gave UnLtd India this support from the start has been vital in getting our operations off the ground. It has been hugely appreciated!

6. Has the grant enabled you to attract other funds/resources either for this work
or for other aspects of the organisation? Please give details.
Yes. Following ERSF’s grant, we have received funding from the ICICI Foundation in India. We are also in negotiations with a number of other India and UK based funders, on which we hope to report good news soon.

7. Please briefly give further information about the long-term funding of the work supported by the Erach and Roshan Sadri Foundation, if not already covered.
On Jehangir Sarosh and Mark Cann’s invitation, we are reapplying for one final funding round from ERSF in September 2009 to continue to support our Mumbai incubation scheme as we build a sustainable, scalable model for an Indian-wide programme. As detailed earlier, we are also applying to other trusts and foundations to build on the funding we have raised to date.

8. Do you have any comments on the service of the Erach and Roshan Sadri Foundation. Please make suggestions that you think may make us more effective.
It would be wonderful to show Mark and/or the Trustees the work that they have so generously supported here in India. We are looking forward to welcoming Mark here next year.
Otherwise, none. It is continues to be a joy to work with a funder that:
a) Is prepared to support early-stage organisations such as ours
b) Keeps paperwork (and therefore time taken up) to a minimum