The Importance of a Need Statement

Christian Lawrence

The Need Statement presents evidence that can be used to show support for the need of the project or program being proposed. It should inform the grantor that the organization is capable of expressing what exactly is needed and why that need in itself is important.

The Need Statement should relate to the organization’s mission statement, while also driving the goal of the rest of the grant proposal. It should describe the conditions of the need as it relates to the need of the local community.

Things the Needs Statement should include: • What is the problem? • Why is it a problem? • Implications of the Problem • Challenges to addressing the problem o What has prevented the resolution to the problem? • Why does it matter now? • How and why can outside funding help? • A real example • Current Comparative Data o Can be qualitative or quantitative o www.census.gov and www.fedstats.gov can be used to find data, such as population, poverty levels, the percentage of other languages spoken, etc. They can be found by city/town name and zip code. Need Statement Tips

1. It should be concise, complete, and compelling. a. Funders grant the organization based on what it can do to help the community 2. Refrain from circular reasoning a. The absence of the solution is not the problem 3. State facts to help build the case 4. The reader should be engaged but keep in mind the reader may not know about the local conditions at hand.