Running a childhood cancer foundation: what I need to know about the first 12 month planning?
What and how you do develop your foundation in the first 12-months of your existence, defines the success of your future. People will support foundations that show credibility, funding potential, governance standards, and long-term impact. Childhood cancer foundations' cause and intent are usually strong; however, many foundations struggle because they lack structure, clarity, or discipline. The pillars that sustain your mission should be that you are solving a real and clearly defined problem, that you can deliver service consistently and professionally and that you can sustain it financially and operationally.
Why the first year is important
It defines your identity and credibility.Trust is earned and during year one, donors, partners, beneficiaries, and government decide whether to trust you. Your mission, values, and professionalism become your reputation. If these are vague or inconsistent, it is hard to recover later.
It sets your governance and compliance foundation. Getting your legal structure right, board roles, policies, and financial controls early prevents serious risks later. Weak governance is one of the biggest reasons NGOs lose funding or face reputational damage.
Many organisations start with passion, but year one should validate the actual need. Are you solving a real gap, or duplicating existing services? This is where needs assessments and stakeholder engagement matter.
Relationship building is the cornerstone of your foundation. If you handle partnerships with hospitals, government departments, donors, and communities poorly, you can close doors quickly.
Monitoring, reporting, financial tracking, and programme delivery systems must start early. If you delay this, scaling becomes chaotic and unmanageable.
Things you should avoid
- Trying to operate too broad too soon. For example, do not try to work in the whole country, first start in one hospital or district.
- Weak relationships with the medical staff, hospital management, or your Department / Ministry of Health.
- Overpromising to donors on service delivery. Set reachable goals and be honest on what you can do and not do.
- Lack of financial discipline could ruin your foundation. Apply good financial systems from the start and be transparent and accountable. The fund in the foundation is money donors chose to give to your programmes, and it needs to reach its intended purpose.
- Do not use volunteers to provide professional services. Many counsellors, therapists or well-qualified professionals want to give their time; however, it might not be what the interdisciplinary team (IDT) working in the paediatric oncology unit need and this could ruin relationships with the hospital and sometimes confuse parents (especially when they get mixed messages)
By the end of year one, the following should be in place and stable
Your foundation should be registered, and systems should be in place to report to your NGO, Charity or Foundation’s legal and tax requirements. Your Board should be well established, functional and should have portfolios to enhance the foundation. In addition, you should have at least 1-2 focussed and sustainable programmes. Start small and rather grow your programmes of support than to have more programmes with no impact.
You should have an active relationship with the medical team, hospital management and hopefully the Department / Ministry of Health. It will help to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to define your role in the paediatric oncology unit/s in the hospital/s where you work. This will help to set clear boundaries. Use an MOU when starting engagement with a hospital or Department / Ministry of Health while you are still defining roles and building trust and alignment. You can sign an MOA when delivering services in a hospital, when roles, responsibilities, and risks must be clear and when resources, funding, or accountability are involved.
Ensure that you have a good Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system in place so that you can deliver real data. An accurate Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system will assist you to show impact.
For every $3 you raise, you should only spend $1. It is important that operations continue when revenue is unpredictable. At the end of 12 months, you should at least have 1-2 reliable funding streams. Break trust and you will lose donors.
Demonstrate impact through data and storytelling
Show clear evidence of impact by combining quantitative data with compelling stories that illustrate the difference your programmes make in the lives of beneficiaries. Ensure that evidence and supporting information are documented and available in appropriate formats, whether as a soft copy (digital/electronic format), hard copy (printed format), or blended copy (a combination of digital and printed formats). Develop publications such as Annual Reviews, newsletters, reports, and printable PDF documents that are suitable for both electronic distribution and hard-copy printing. Share key results and impact stories through your website, social media platforms, and organisational publications to increase visibility, accountability, and stakeholder engagement.
Read more
- United Nation Development Programme. 2009. Handbook on Planning, Monitoring and Evaluating for Development Results. https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/671515?v=pd
- Bridgespan Group. n.d. Guide to using a program strategy map. https://www.bridgespan.org/getmedia/fadc57f0-e6ad-4a70-a58fff73083a3741/guide-to-using-a-program-strategy-map.pdf
- James Noble. October 2019. Theory of change in ten steps. https://npproduction.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Theory of-Change-10-Steps Updated.pdf?_gl=1*3brfid*_ga*Mzc1NDU2NDAyLjE3Nzc3MTc5NDE.*_ga_5Q3PNDT P66*czE3Nzc3MTc5NDIkbzEkZzAkdDE3Nzc3MTc5NDIkajYwJGwwJGgw
- Managers who lead. A handbook for improving health services. 2005. Management Science for Health. Cambridge Massachusetts. https://docslib.org/doc/235495/managers-who-lead-a-handbook-for-improving health-services
- Aid Delivery Methods. Volume 1. Project Cycle Management Guidelines. March 2004. European Commission Brussels. https://international partnerships.ec.europa.eu/document/download/f7ed20c4-5fc2-4ed7-b54c 0805e4ed952d_en?filename=methodology-aid-delivery-methods-project-cycle management-200403_en.pdf
- Jeanne Bell, et. al. 2010. Non-profit sustainability. Making strategic decisions for financial viability. (The total pages displayed will be limited; however valuable information). https://books.google.co.za/books?id=qBHS9oOu9NkC&pg=PA92&source=gbs_sele cted_pages&cad=1#v=onepage&q&f=false
- Jody Zall Kusek. Ray C. Rist. 2004. Ten Steps to a Results Based Monitoring and Evaluation System. The World Bank. https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/638011468766181874/pdf/296720P APER0100steps.pdf
Was this article helpful?
Related Articles
Why do we need to start a childhood cancer foundation?
Many parents who have been through the childhood cancer journey have a need to give back either to honour their child, to support other families facing the same journey, to address the unmet needs in the health system, to raise awareness about childhood cancer, to raise funds for treatment or supportive care programmes, to provide sense of purpose and healing, to build a supportive community, to advocate for the children’s rights, to fill the gap left by their own experience or the contribute to research and improved outcomes.