Comic Relief Community Fund

We are pleased to be managing this new fund on behalf of Comic Relief in England. It will provide grants of up to £10,000, supporting project delivery and organisational capacity building, helping organisations flourish.
The funding is split as follows:
• Up to £1,000 for capacity building
• Up to £9,000 for project delivery
We will fund applications from grass roots, community led organisations that can demonstrate how people with lived experience of the issues being tackled are involved in the organisation and the project.
Applications must sit within one of the four key themes:
A Safe Place To Be: Supporting people to rebuild their lives because of homelessness or forced migration.
Children Survive & Thrive: Supporting children up to the age of 11 to grow, play and learn
Gender Justice: Championing those who identify as women and girls, including initiatives tackling domestic violence, abuse or exploitation
Mental Health Matters: Supporting good mental health in communities and tackling stigma and discrimination. For more details please click here.

The Woodward Charitable Trust

The Woodward Charitable Trust only makes grants for core costs rather than specific projects as they recognise that smaller charities can find these hard to fund. They hope that this will have a more direct impact on the organisations that they choose to fund.

Applicants should take the time to read these guidelines in order to avoid submitting applications that are likely to be rejected. We know that preparing applications can be time consuming and we don’t want any organisation to expend that precious commodity unnecessarily.

Trustees only fund organisations that support at least one of the following three target groups and particularly look to fund projects that help families and young people and that are aiming to improve the life chances of their beneficiaries.

Please note that if your organisation also helps other groups outside our 3 priority areas you may still apply, however, it will be expected that the majority of your beneficiaries (more than 50%) are within at least one of these areas. If you do not give us details of how you help within our priority areas you will not be funded.
Trustees like projects that promote community cohesion and the development of skills that will change the outlook and outcomes for the users. Organisations that promote volunteering and involve both past and present users in their operations or management are encouraged. Trustees only consider applications for core costs and are looking for organisations which aim to achieve a positive impact in at least one of the following areas:
• Children and young people who are isolated, at risk of exclusion or involved in anti-social behaviour and projects to help those who have been in the care system. This also covers gang violence and knife crime, education and mentoring as well as projects that work to raise self-esteem and employment opportunities and encourage an active involvement in and contribution towards the local community;
• Disadvantaged families, this covers parenting support and guidance, mental health, food poverty, refuges and domestic violence projects. We understand that many organisations dealing with disadvantaged families may also work with other disadvantaged people, but please note that at least 50% of your service users must fall into our three priority groups in order to be considered for a grant. It is important to give us details as to how the work of your organisation fits within our guidelines;
• Prisoners and ex-offenders and specifically projects that maintain and develop contact with prisoners’ families and help with the rehabilitation and resettlement of prisoners and/or ex-offenders after their release.
The Trustees make two types of grants:
• Small grants – up to £3,000, but usually £1,000 or less;
• Large grants – Only a few large grants are awarded over £3,000 each year, and these are usually to charities known to the Trustees.
General Application Guidelines | The Woodward Charitable Trust

Deadline: The Trustees favour small-scale, locally based initiatives and most grants are only for one year. Trustees review grant applications twice a year, usually in March and October

Tesco Community Grants

Applications accepted on a rolling basis. Tesco Community Grants is open to charities and community organisations to apply for a grant of up to £1,500. Every three months,
three local good causes are selected to be in the blue token customer vote in Tesco stores throughout the UK. More info.

Community Energy Fund

Grants are available for not-for-profit organisations who can raise their initial funding through a crowdfunding campaign to support community projects committed to being environmentally conscious through ideas such as installing renewable technology or introducing energy efficiency measures in their endeavour to increase energy independence. Further info.

The Leathersellers’ Small Grants Programme

Grants up to £5,000 for charities registered and operating in the UK (including Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIO) but not Community Interest Companies (CIC) that are working:

• to provide assistance to vulnerable people in their community
• in geographical areas of deprivation (within the UK) – they recognise all relative measures of deprivation as tracked by the Indices of Deprivation or similar tools. they ask who your work helps and why this is needed for that group or in that area so you can explain the need that exists there.
• with an annual income of under £200,000 (secured for the coming year)

They meet monthly, and close each round after 45 bids received.

Read more

Screwfix Foundation

We are passionate about making a difference to communities across the UK. We are a grant giving charity with a clear purpose to support projects that improve, repair and maintain homes and community facilities used by those in need throughout the UK.
The Screwfix Foundation currently offers local registered charities and not for profit organisations funding up to the region of £5,000.
How do we raise money? We raise funds throughout the year to support causes that will change people’s lives. Look out for raffles and fundraising weeks held within Screwfix stores and you can also round up your pennies when shopping online at http://www.screwfix.com or on the Screwfix app.
As well as helping local charities and not for profit organisations, we also partner with Macmillan Cancer Support, donating funds towards their home improvement programme, which helps people suffering from cancer in financial need with minor home improvements.

Before applying for funding from The Screwfix Foundation, your organisation MUST:
• Be a registered charity or not for profit organisation.
• Help those in need. This could be by reason of financial hardship, sickness, distress or other disadvantages in the UK.
• Be looking for funding to support projects that relate to the repair, maintenance, improvement or construction of. homes, community buildings and other buildings.
Further details here.

Deadline: All applications are reviewed individually by our team on a quarterly basis, the review dates are in March, June, September and December.

National Lottery Community Fund – regular funding programmes

The National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF) has three rolling funding programmes:
* Awards for all (for applications under £10,000)
* Reaching Communities (for applications over £10,000)
* Partnerships (for applications over £10,000 for organisations that work together with a shared set of goals to help communities to thrive)
The aim of the programmes is to support communities to thrive by funding activities that:
* Build strong relationships in and across communities.
* Improve the places and spaces that matter to communities.
* Help more people to reach their potential, by supporting them at the earliest possible stage.
Organisations can apply for funding to:
* Continue to deliver activity – whether the community needs crisis response, recovery or business as usual activity.
* Change and adapt, becoming more resilient to respond to new and future challenges.
Applications for all three programmes are accepted on an ongoing basis and further information on these programmes and how to apply can be found through the links above.

Newly Opened: CLA Charitable Trust
The CLA Charitable Trust is dedicated to helping those who are disabled or disadvantaged to visit and participate in learning experiences about the countryside.
We support charitable organisations that access the benefits of the countryside to pursue the health and wellbeing of people and to provide opportunities for education about the countryside in England and Wales.
Priority areas – Children and young people, disadvantaged financially, physically, mentally, or from areas of deprivation.
Who can apply – Small and medium sized charities and not for profit organisations such as CIC’s with clear social purpose based in England and Wales, who have not been in receipt of a grant from CLACT in the previous three years and have a current safeguarding policy.
What we fund – Applications for running costs, project works and capital works. Evidence of need should be demonstrated.
Click here for details.

Deadline: Please apply by 6th February for your application to be considered at the March meeting; 26th April for the June meeting; and 31st August for the October meeting.

Julia and Hans Rausing Trust – Foodbank Fund

The Foodbank Fund has been established in response to the cost of living crisis and evidence that many foodbanks are facing the combined challenges of increasing need, escalating running costs, and food donations failing to keep up with demand.
The Fund is open to applications from foodbanks for funding to help meet costs such as the purchase of additional food items and increased running costs.
The definition of a foodbank for the purposes of this Fund is a venue which regularly gives out emergency food parcels at least once each week and has been running for six months or more.
• You must be a not-for-profit organisation established before 1 January 2020
• Your annual income is between £25,000 – £1,000,000
• Applications accepted until 6 December 2022
Foodbank Fund – The Julia and Hans Rausing Trust (juliahansrausingtrust.org)

Deadline: 1st January 2023

Barclays and Sported Community Football Fund

Sported has partnered with Barclays on the Barclays Community Football Fund, offering small grants, training, kit and exclusive ticketing offers to make football more accessible in communities across the UK.
Barclays believe in creating opportunities for all through access to football. Through the Barclays Community Football Fund, we want to grow participation in football at every level.
Grants of £500 are available for groups wishing to start offering football, to those keen to expand their existing provision to new audiences or those already delivering football to under-represented young people.
Alongside the grants, the programme offers training and support resources to groups to help reduce inequalities in the participation of football.
The programme has a particular focus on including girls and young people from lower socio-economic and under-represented groups – including racially diverse communities, people with disabilities, and people from the LGBTQ+ community. More details here.

Deadline: Rolling until 31st December 2024

Schroder Charitable Trust

The Schroder Charity Trust makes grants of up to £5,000 towards core and project costs to charities registered in the UK for work under the following categories:
• Arts, Culture and Heritage
• Education, Training and Employment
• Environment and Conservation
• Health and Wellbeing
• Strengthening Communities
The Trustees are particularly interested in applications which can demonstrate the following:
• Building strong communities and an understanding of how to engage with intended beneficiaries
• Replicable and sustainable work, rather than one off events
• Value for money
• Maximising the use of volunteers
• Support of older people
• Support for marginalised/vulnerable younger people
• The use of helplines and information services
• Sustainability of funding i.e. the charity will not be solely reliant on a grant from the Schroder Charity Trust for their work.
More details here. Deadline: Rolling

Home Instead Charities

About Us: Home Instead Charities were founded by Home Instead, the UK’s leading provider of home care. Our mission is to end loneliness for ageing adults. We exist to bring happiness and joy into the lives of our ageing population through peer support lunch clubs, art clubs and music therapy groups. 
Criteria: Small, local registered charities for projects that further the needs of our ageing adult population, through well-being activities and programmes to prevent social isolation and loneliness. Most of your group members must be over 55 years old or the project you are requesting funding for must benefit people aged over 55.
Grant Size: Up to £1,500
Deadline for applications: Rolling programme

Grants For Good
Applications close on Thurs 15th December.
Making a positive difference to communities, people and the environment, Grants for Good is theMatthew Good Foundation’s first fund that invites local charities, voluntary groups or social enterprises that have an average annual income of less than £50,000 to apply for funding. Every three months, they will share £10,000 between 5 shortlisted projects that have a positive impact on communities, people or the environment. The project that receives the most votes will receive a grant of £3,500, second place £2,500, third place £2,000 and fourth and fifth place will both receive £1,000. Further info.

Future Communities Fund
Applications close on Fri 23rd December.
This new fund will offer grants of up to £30,000 a year for five years to organisations helping diverse young people develop the skills to become future leaders and activists. We have a total of £1.5m to award from this round of funding. If your organisation has an annual turnover of £250k or less with young people’s voices from all backgrounds and abilities at the core of your delivery, you may be eligible to apply. Click here for further information.

Thank you to Berkshire’s fabulous CVS’s for the information contained in this article – Wokingham & Bracknell InVOLve, Volunteer Centre West Berkshire, Slough CVS & Reading Voluntary Action.