Camden Giving

"Thanks to Salesforce and with Hyphen8’s help, we awarded over £150,000 in under two weeks. They made what felt impossible achievable—and did it without cutting corners during the start of COVID, which made a huge impact."

About Camden Giving 

Camden Giving is an independent charity committed to ending local poverty and inequality. Based on the belief that everyone has something to give—time, skills, or money—they channel community resources into support for local people and grassroots organisations.

Camden is one of the most unequal boroughs in London. With a 7-year life expectancy gap between the richest and poorest areas, and 43% of children living in poverty after housing costs, the disparities are stark. Residents face barriers including unaffordable housing, limited job opportunities, and unequal access to healthcare—making Camden a critical place to focus efforts on systemic change.

The Challenge: Urgent Action in a Time of Crisis

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Camden Giving urgently needed a way to open a community emergency fund. They originally planned to launch the fund once £50,000 was raised—but local generosity far exceeded expectations.

Within just over a week, they had raised £156,000, and needed to open the fund immediately. Their existing systems couldn’t support the speed or scale required, so they turned to Hyphen8 for a rapid Salesforce solution.

"We knew we had to act fast.

The money was ready, the need was urgent, but we didn’t have the tools in place to move at the pace required."

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  Pain Points 

With donations pouring in faster than expected, Camden Giving needed to launch their emergency fund immediately. Their existing systems couldn’t support the volume, speed, or coordination required.

  • Pain Bullet

    Urgent Timescales

    • A huge wave of local donations meant the fund needed to launch weeks ahead of schedule.

    • No time to build a system from scratch—speed was critical.

  • Exclamation Bullet

    Manual and Unconnected Processes

    • There was no infrastructure in place to manage applications, panels, or communications efficiently.

    • Without automation, the team risked delays in awarding and processing grants.

  • Pain Bullet

    Remote Panel Collaboration

    • Camden Giving relied on external panels to review applications, but had no system to manage this process online.

    • With everyone working from home they needed a system where everything could be managed on the cloud. 
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The Solution: A Fast, Scalable Salesforce Setup

Hyphen8 rapidly implemented grantFlex, our Salesforce accelerator, and worked with Camden Giving to configure a streamlined, end-to-end emergency grants process.

  • Rocket Bullet

    Rapid Application Setup

    • Installed grantFlex to provide a ready-made framework for emergency funding.

    • Built a customised application form using FormAssembly, connected directly to Salesforce.

    • All submitted applications automatically created records in Salesforce—no manual data entry needed.

  • Rocket Bullet

    Streamlined Panel Review

    • Created a Salesforce Community for external panel members to securely review and comment on applications.

    • Implemented the grantFlex meeting wizard to manage decision-making during panel meetings, including awarding, rejecting, and editing amounts.

    • Built automated email templates to notify applicants of outcomes instantly after the meeting.

  • Rocket Bullet

    Faster Grant Acceptance & Payments

    • Developed a pre-filled FormAssembly acceptance form, containing grantee details and award information.

    • Allowed grantees to attach required files and quickly accept their award, accelerating the payment process.

Meet the organisation

Learn more about Camden Giving and their incredible impact and mission.

The Impact of working with Hyphen8

£K
Awarded to 29 organisations in just 10 days
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Applications received and managed through Salesforce in 10 days
Manual spreadsheets required throughout the entire process

The Impact: £156,000 Awarded in Just 10 Days

Camden Giving launched the fund with zero delays, managing the entire process—applications, review, decisions, and payments—within Salesforce.

Their new system enabled them to work efficiently, collaboratively, and securely under extreme pressure.

  • Smile Bullet

    Speed and Scalability

    • System set up within days, allowing Camden Giving to respond in real time.

    • Ready-to-use Salesforce tools supported customisation and flexibility under tight deadlines.

  • Tick Bullet

    Seamless Collaboration

    • Panel members could securely review applications online, removing barriers to decision-making.

    • grantFlex’s meeting wizard simplified approvals and automated next steps.

  • Smile Bullet

    Efficient Applicant Experience

    • Pre-filled acceptance forms saved time for grantees and accelerated payments.

    • Applicants received automated communications with no delay.

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Making an impact

"With Hyphen8’s help, we awarded over £150,000 in under two weeks. They made what felt impossible achievable—and did it without cutting corners."

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All grant information on Salesforce which sped up the time to impact.

Advice for other charities

"We chose Hyphen8 because of their deep understanding of the nonprofit sector and their proven track record of delivering for organisations like ours.

Their extensive experience working with a wide range of funders meant they understood our needs straight away and could move quickly to implement a solution that worked. In a time-critical situation, we needed a partner we could trust to deliver—Hyphen8’s knowledge, responsiveness, and ability to translate our vision into Salesforce made them the perfect fit.

They didn’t just build us a system; they helped us make an impact when it mattered most."

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