Free grant proposal template
A nonprofit grant proposal with a summary, a need statement backed by data, goals and objectives, activities, evaluation, a budget table and a sustainability plan. Use it to apply to a foundation or CSR fund.
What's in this template
Grant Proposal: Padhai Saathi After-School Reading Programme
Submitted by Ujjwal Shiksha Foundation, Pune, Maharashtra
To the Tata Community Learning Fund
Date: 15 October 2026 | Amount requested: ₹18,40,000 over 12 months
Summary
Ujjwal Shiksha Foundation requests ₹18,40,000 to run Padhai Saathi, a 12-month after-school reading programme for 600 children in Classes 3 to 5 at 12 municipal schools in Hadapsar and Yerawada, Pune. Trained community volunteers will lead daily 60-minute reading sessions in Marathi and English using levelled books. Our goal is that at least 70% of participating children read a Class 2 level story fluently by March 2027, up from 31% today.
Organisation background
Founded in 2014, Ujjwal Shiksha Foundation is a registered trust (12A and 80G certified) working with low-income communities in Pune. We run learning centres in 9 slum settlements and have reached 7,800 children over ten years. Our 2024–25 budget was ₹1.12 crore, and our audited accounts are attached.
Statement of need
Foundational reading in Pune's municipal schools lags far behind grade level:
- In our baseline test of 640 children in the 12 target schools (July 2026), only 31% of Class 3 to 5 children could read a Class 2 level paragraph.
- ASER 2024 found that 42% of Class 5 children in rural and urban government schools in Maharashtra could not read a Class 2 text.
- Average class size in the target schools is 46, leaving teachers little time for children who fall behind.
- 78% of parents surveyed work daily-wage jobs and cannot support reading at home; 64% have no children's books at home.
Children who cannot read by Class 5 struggle in every other subject and are three times more likely to drop out before Class 10. Closing this gap now is far cheaper than remediation later.
Goals and objectives
Goal: Every participating child reads with understanding by the end of the school year.
| Objective | Measure | Target by March 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Improve reading fluency | Children reading a Class 2 story fluently | 70% (from 31%) |
| Improve comprehension | Children answering 3 of 4 comprehension questions | 60% (from 22%) |
| Build regular attendance | Children attending 4 or more sessions a week | 80% |
| Engage parents | Parents attending at least 3 reading melas | 50% |
Programme activities
- Volunteer recruitment and training (October–November 2026): Recruit 40 volunteers from local colleges and self-help groups. Give 5 days of training in phonics, story reading and group management.
- Baseline and grouping (November 2026): Test each child with the ASER reading tool and group them by level, not class.
- Daily reading sessions (November 2026–March 2027): Run 60-minute sessions, Monday to Friday, in school classrooms after the last period. Each volunteer works with a group of 15 children.
- Book corners (December 2026): Set up a 300-book library corner in each school, with lending cards so children take books home.
- Reading melas (quarterly): Hold community reading fairs with storytelling, games and parent sessions.
- Teacher sharing (monthly): Share each child's progress with class teachers so support continues in class.
Evaluation
An independent evaluator, Dr Meera Kulkarni of the Department of Education, Savitribai Phule Pune University, will run baseline, mid-line (January 2027) and end-line (March 2027) tests using the ASER tool. Volunteers will record attendance daily on a mobile app, and our programme manager will review the data every two weeks. We will share a mid-term report in February 2027 and a final report with all results in April 2027.
Budget
| Item | Detail | Amount (₹) |
|---|---|---|
| Volunteer stipends | 40 volunteers × ₹2,500 × 5 months | 5,00,000 |
| Programme manager | 1 full-time, 12 months × ₹45,000 | 5,40,000 |
| Field coordinators | 2 part-time, 12 months × ₹15,000 each | 3,60,000 |
| Training | 5 days, venue, materials, trainer fees | 1,20,000 |
| Books and book corners | 12 schools × 300 books, shelves | 1,80,000 |
| Reading melas | 4 events × 12 schools | 60,000 |
| Evaluation | Independent evaluator, 3 rounds | 50,000 |
| Administration | Accounts, audit, communication (1.6%) | 30,000 |
| Total | 18,40,000 |
Sustainability
Padhai Saathi is designed to outlast this grant. The book corners and trained volunteers stay in the schools. From 2027–28, the Pune Municipal Corporation education department has agreed in principle to fund volunteer stipends in 6 of the 12 schools if end-line results meet our targets. We will also train two teachers in each school to lead sessions, and we are raising ₹6,00,000 from local businesses and individual donors to support the remaining schools.
Contact
Anjali Deshmukh, Executive Director
Ujjwal Shiksha Foundation, 22 Magarpatta Road, Hadapsar, Pune 411028
[email protected] | +91 98220 45512