What is our objective?
The overarching objective for AFCP is to make the most of charitable support for science and education in UK farming and food.

What are our strategic aims?
To achieve this overall objective of AFCP with the most efficient use of our limited resources it is has been agreed that there should be two main components to the strategy

1. To facilitate and develop an awareness and understanding of all appropriate funding and collaboration opportunities between the three stakeholder groups, which are
   • primary funders: - like the research councils, levy boards, HEFC & Defra who provide much of the basic underpinning funds for research & education within the industry
   • providers: - like the colleges, universities and research institutes that provide the opportunities, through both staff and facilities, to undertake the necessary educational and research roles
   • charities: - that have funding and expertise to supplement and support educational and research roles
      
2. To strengthen the community of leading research/education funding charities to ensure all potential opportunities and synergies are recognised and where appropriate are realised

Outcomes from the successful execution of these two strategic components will be

1. A comprehensive, up-to-date database that provides opportunities for those seeking charity funding
2. Through the database, opportunities for successful collaborative projects involving charities, providers and primary funders
3. Effective communication between charities leading to a greater understanding of their objectives and activities.

What do we expect to achieve?
Essentially there are four broad targets for our activities if we are to achieve our objective of helping charities make the most of their support for the agri-food industry.

1. Increasing the number and the quality of projects supported
   As the costs of courses, travel, research etc. increases individual charities are finding it increasingly difficult to fund all their worthwhile projects. One consequence is that the total number of projects supported will decrease. However, if two or three charities that have compatible objectives can cooperate then the combined resources will enable projects to be funded that would otherwise not be supported. Cooperation in this way provides each charity with the same benefits from the project, whether it is publicity, presentations or reports.
    
2. Making it easier for applicants to obtain funding
   As many charities support the industry it can be difficult for potential applicants to know first, what charities there are and second, which ones are most relevant to their specific needs. The website is designed to address this problem and should improve the relevance and focus of applications.
    
3. Helping cooperation
   Many charities are unaware of other charities operating with similar objectives and the website will enable charities to identify easily other similar charities and opportunities for synergies. Regular inter-charity communications will an opportunity for them to examine their own and other’s procedures to assess their efficiency and effectiveness.
    
4. Increasing interaction with primary funders
   Industry strategies are set by a range of different bodies including BBSRC, AHDB & Defra, To maximise the effectiveness of their support it is important that charities are knowledgeable about the strategies relevant to their own objectives. This understanding can be achieved via AFCP facilitating relevant interactions at both strategic and tactical levels.