Readiness check · about 30 minutes
Get ready for a partner capacity assessment, free
When a donor, UN agency or international NGO assesses your organisation, Aidfolio helps you prepare. Answer 32 short questions about how you really work, list which of 41 standard documents you hold, and take away a readiness pack and a dated action plan. It runs entirely in your browser: nothing you type is uploaded, there is no account, and your answers are saved only on your device.
How it works
Three steps, in your own time
Describe how you really work
Short multiple-choice questions in 9 areas, from finance and procurement to safeguarding and data protection. Skip any area that does not apply.
List what you hold
For each standard document, say whether you have it and when it was last updated. Out-of-date documents are flagged so you can refresh them before the assessment.
Take your pack
Print it or save it as a PDF, copy it as text, or download a spreadsheet for your assessor.
What you get
What your readiness pack contains
- Readiness profile. For each area, how many documents are ready, out of date or missing.
- Priority gaps. What to fix first, grouped as “Do first” (what assessors ask for most), “Quick wins” (documents that only need updating) and “Next”. Every gap links to a free resource that helps close it.
- Action plan. A date and a person for each gap, so a funder can see what you will put in place.
- Practice statements. Plain drafts of how you work, built only from your answers, for you to check and edit.
- Evidence index. Your documents with their dates, like the front page of a binder.
- Passport summary. Your answers organised by the capacity areas of the Charter for Change due-diligence passport, plus a spreadsheet your assessor can open.
Coverage
The 9 areas the check covers
| Area | What it covers | Where assessors ask about it |
|---|---|---|
| Governance and registration | Who is responsible for the organisation, and is it legally registered? | HACT: Implementing partner; Organizational structure and staffing. C4C passport: General; Governance |
| Strategy and accountability | Where the organisation is heading, and how the people you serve and the groups you fund can hold you to account. | C4C passport: Strategy; Accountability. Core Humanitarian Standard: feedback and complaints |
| Financial management | How money is held, approved, recorded and checked. | HACT: Accounting policies and procedures; Financial reporting and monitoring. C4C passport: Financial and Asset Management |
| Procurement | How you buy goods and services fairly and keep a record of it. | HACT: Procurement. C4C passport: Financial and Asset Management |
| Assets and inventory | Equipment you own and goods you store or distribute. | HACT: Fixed assets and inventory. C4C passport: Financial and Asset Management |
| People and security | How you hire, contract and set expectations for staff and volunteers, and how you keep them safe. | HACT: Organizational structure and staffing; UN PSEA standard 3: Human resources systems. C4C passport: HR, Safeguarding and Security |
| Safeguarding and PSEA | Protecting the people you serve from sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA), and responding if it happens. | UN Implementing Partner PSEA assessment: core standards 1 to 8. C4C passport: HR, Safeguarding and Security |
| Fraud, sanctions and risk | Preventing misuse of funds and checking who you work with. | Common donor anti-fraud, counter-terrorism and sanctions clauses. C4C passport: often added as agreed additional criteria |
| Data protection and IT | Looking after personal information about the people you serve and your staff, and keeping your systems safe. | IASC Operational Guidance on Data Responsibility; your national law. C4C passport: Data and IT |
Mappings are a guide to where similar questions appear. Each assessor uses its own form and wording.
Checklist
Due-diligence documents checklist: the 41 documents the check asks about
These are the documents assessors most often ask local organisations to show. The check asks whether you hold each one and when it was last updated. The “current for” periods are Aidfolio’s defaults, not an official rule; your donor may use different ones.
Governance and registration
- Registration certificate
- Constitution or governing document
- List of board members Counts as current for 12 months
- Board minutes from the last 12 months Counts as current for 12 months
- Conflict-of-interest policy or declaration form
- Organisation chart Counts as current for 24 months
Strategy and accountability
- Strategic plan Counts as current for 60 months
- Annual report or activity report Counts as current for 18 months
- Complaints and feedback policy or procedure Counts as current for 36 months
- Sample agreement with a downstream partner
Financial management
- Bank statements for the last 3 months Counts as current for 3 months
- Latest audited or reviewed annual accounts Counts as current for 18 months
- Finance manual or written financial procedures Counts as current for 36 months
- Budget for the current year Counts as current for 12 months
- Bank reconciliations for the last 3 months Counts as current for 3 months
Procurement
- Procurement policy or written purchasing rules Counts as current for 36 months
- One complete purchase file from the last 12 months Counts as current for 12 months
- List of regular suppliers Counts as current for 24 months
Assets and inventory
- Fixed asset register Counts as current for 12 months
- Stock cards or inventory records Counts as current for 6 months
- Record of the last physical count Counts as current for 12 months
People and security
- HR policy or staff handbook Counts as current for 36 months
- Staff contract template
- Signed code of conduct (one example)
- Job descriptions for key roles Counts as current for 36 months
- Payroll records for the last 3 months Counts as current for 3 months
- Security plan or security procedures Counts as current for 12 months
Safeguarding and PSEA
- PSEA or safeguarding policy Counts as current for 36 months
- Focal point appointment or terms of reference
- Training attendance records Counts as current for 24 months
- Description of community reporting channels
- Referral list for survivor services Counts as current for 12 months
- Investigation and corrective action procedure Counts as current for 36 months
Fraud, sanctions and risk
- Anti-fraud and anti-corruption policy Counts as current for 36 months
- Whistleblowing procedure Counts as current for 36 months
- Sanctions screening records for the last 12 months Counts as current for 12 months
- Risk register Counts as current for 12 months
Data protection and IT
- Data protection policy Counts as current for 36 months
- Consent statement or form
- Retention schedule Counts as current for 36 months
- IT or information security policy Counts as current for 36 months
Common questions
Is the readiness check a certification?
No. It is a self-assessment. Nobody checks your answers, and your pack says so. Donors and partners still run their own assessments; the pack helps you get ready for them and answer their forms faster.
We have never been assessed. Can we use it?
Yes, it is designed for first assessments. Tick “We have never had an assessment” at the start, and your pack includes an action plan with dates you choose, so a first funder can see what you already do and what you will put in place.
Which assessments does it help with?
It is organised around the questions that appear in common partner assessments: UN HACT micro-assessments, the UN Implementing Partner PSEA capacity assessment, and the Charter for Change due-diligence passport. It is independent and not affiliated with any of them.
Will it write our policies?
It drafts short practice statements from what you told it you already do, so you can check, edit and adopt them. It never claims you do something you said you don't.
How long does it take?
About 30 minutes. You can stop at any point and continue later on the same device, or save a progress file and open it on another device.
Is my information safe?
It runs entirely in your browser: nothing you type is uploaded, there is no account, and your answers are saved only on your device.