How To Pay A Contractor

As a social movement organisation, we don't have the budget of a typical non-profit. Since we want to amass grassroots power, we also strive to ask people to contribute to our work on a voluntary basis as much as possible.

Sometimes though, it's just necessary to pay a contractor. Some tips:

• Explore free or cheaper solutions that might yield similar results to working with the contractor

• Ask the contractor if they would be willing to do the work on a voluntary, pro-bono, needs-based or discounted basis

• Seek "out of the box" solutions - for example, could the costliest part of the work be done without too much complication by someone within Animal Think Tank?

Am I authorised to pay a contractor?

Paying a contractor works just like any normal expenditure. Check out our page on How To Spend Money for more.

What do I need to do when I pay a contractor?

You'll need an invoice from the contractor. Then make the payment as you would any other ATT expense. Read our page on How To Spend Money for more.

Sample Text For Negotiating With Contractors

Hi XXX,

My name's XXX, I'm based in Lancaster, UK at a grassroots organisation called Animal Think Tank which is building a UK-based social movement for Animal Freedom.

I'm writing to you about... [use this paragraph to talk about the services you're interested in and why you're interested in them. Personalise this to build a connection with the contractor.]

...We operate like Extinction Rebellion in that we mainly work with others on a pro-bono / volunteer / needs basis. We do this as we know our movement has limited funds, and so our work needs to be grounded in passion and a voluntary ethic to be sustainable. We do recognise though that on occasion buying in professional services is worthwhile. Given this context, I’m wondering if you would help us by [insert your ask to the contractor here]. Otherwise please let us know what a viable basis might be for you.

Thank you in advance, and I'm really looking forward to chatting further!