Pay What It Takes launches new website as campaign moves to next level

PWIT has recently launched a new website and a range of resources to support the continuation of this campaign.

The Pay What It Takes (PWIT) Coalition and the Charity Consortium led by passionate stakeholders from funder, intermediary and for-purpose communities have been leading the PWIT movement across Australia. At the recent Fundraising Institute of Australia Conference, the movement’s co-chairs Lisa Allan and Denise Cheng announced that the PWIT Coalition and the Charity Consortium are unifying under one umbrella to champion an effective, sustainable and impactful future for charities and their beneficiaries.

Conversations about paying what it takes to cover the full cost of delivering impact have been on the agenda for some time.  For funders, both philanthropic and government, it’s about understanding what the ‘indirect costs’ or ‘overheads’ of for-purpose organisations are and having realistic expectations of running costs.  For fund-seekers, it’s about how to present the information and to make the ask.  But it’s also about debunking the media and public perception that for-purpose organisations can deliver services and overcome social and environmental challenges on the smell of an oily rag.

This often gets referred to as the starvation cycle, where for-purpose organisations are forced to underinvest in their core operational and infrastructure needs such as administrative expenses, staff salaries, technology and fundraising to keep their overheads as low as possible.  In doing so, this underinvestment leads to a self-perpetuating cycle of financial vulnerability and limited impact.

The COVID-19 pandemic was a stark call to action when for-purpose organisations saw the need for their services sky-rocket, and costs escalate all whilst their funding and fundraising efforts were put under immense strain.  This galvanized some funders to take action, to respond to the unparalleled challenges in delivering for-purpose outcomes and adapt funding practices to acknowledge administration costs, remove tied funding restrictions in projects, and proactively consult and listen to understand the needs and issues of the organisations delivering on the front line.  Some funders have adopted these practices and made them business as usual, but others have yet to fully understand the needs for, or implement, a reframed approach.

The Pay What It Takes (PWIT) Coalition and the Charity Consortium, led by passionate stakeholders from funder, intermediary and for-purpose communities, have been leading the PWIT movement across Australia.  Social Ventures Australia and the Centre for Social Impact published the ‘Paying what it takes’ report in 2022, that quantified the Australian context for PWIT and the starvation cycle.  The Coalition then partnered with The Australian Centre for Social Innovation and a widely representative group of industry leaders to define the values and principles that guide this work and deliver a set of tools for funders and for-purpose organisations alike to support a shift in funding practice to paying what it takes.

At the same time the Charity Consortium launched Reframe Overhead in early 2024 to build momentum for change in for-purpose organisations.  It empowered organisations and fundraisers with tools, resources and data to advocate for full-cost funding and dispel the myth that overheads should be minimised by highlighting the data and role they have in improving effectiveness and impact.

The two strands of the campaign came together at the Philanthropy Australia Conference 2024 to present a Masterclass to share the progress to date and showcase and test the tools that had been developed.  At the Fundraising Institute of Australia Conference, February 2025, our recently appointed co-Chairs, Lisa Allan, The Smith Family and Denise Cheng, Equity Trustees, announced that the PWIT Coalition and the Charity Consortium are unifying under one umbrella to continue the movement with the aim to break the starvation cycle and to champion an effective, sustainable and impactful future for charities and their beneficiaries.

By working together, we plan to broaden and deepen knowledge of ‘paying what it takes’ among funders, intermediaries and for-purpose networks.  The PWIT website enables engagement with the sector and disseminates free tools to empower decision makers and influencers to make change.  The website will also showcase the work of those funders and for-purpose organisations that are leading the way in PWIT practice so that others can learn from their experience.

We all need to rethink how we fund the impactful work that is changing the world for the better. If you’d like to learn more about the movement and get involved, head to the website and take a look at the vast array of resources available and sign the pledge.

With thanks to the Steering Committee Sean Barrett, Adam Ognall, Jo Taylor (former Chair) and PWIT Project Officer Lynne Umbers.