Join Connecting Communities in Berkshire: Supporting Rural Communities Across the County

We are pleased to extend a warm invitation to parish and town councils to become members and support the vital work we are doing to strengthen and sustain communities throughout Berkshire.

CCB is dedicated to empowering rural communities through a variety of impactful initiatives. We help enable affordable rural housing, improve rural health and wellbeing, and address rural disadvantage. Additionally, we offer support and guidance to the volunteers who run village halls and community buildings, helping them to navigate challenges and maximise their impact. We also advise families across the county on how to reduce their utility bills, making life a little easier in these challenging times.

For more information on our work and how we are supporting communities, visit our website project pages.

Why Become a Member of CCB?

As a member of CCB, your parish or town council will join a network of communities working together to make a real difference in rural areas. Membership provides access to a range of valuable services and support that can help your community thrive. The benefits of membership include:

  • Free or discounted access to a wide variety of training courses designed to strengthen and support local communities.
  • Opportunities to participate in focus groups, giving you a direct voice in shaping the charity’s future priorities and work.
  • Exclusive invitations to our annual workshop/event and Annual General Meeting, with one vote per membership.
  • Regular e-bulletins providing updates on services, funding opportunities, and events that can benefit your community.
  • Promotion of your community events, news, or facilities through our e-bulletin, social media, and website.
  • Direct support from the CCB team for issues affecting your community.
  • Free job postings for local positions.

The membership fee for 2025 is £42 (£35 + VAT) for parish and town councils, as well as voluntary or community organisations. Your membership will help shape the direction of our work, ensuring that the needs of rural communities in Berkshire are heard and addressed.

Individual Membership: Free, but with a Request for Support

In addition to organisational memberships, CCB is also open to individual members. Individual membership is completely free, but we encourage members to consider making a small donation to help support our ongoing efforts and the essential work we do to improve the lives of rural communities.

We believe that by working together, we can create stronger, more resilient, and sustainable communities. Your support helps us continue providing essential services, from offering advice on energy efficiency to addressing health and wellbeing challenges, and much more.

We would be delighted to welcome you as a member of CCB and look forward to the opportunity to work alongside you.

If you have any questions or would like further information, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. To join us, simply complete the online membership form .

Thank you for considering supporting Connecting Communities in Berkshire. We look forward to hearing from you soon.


Funding Opportunities in April

Newly Opened: Lloyds Bank Foundation – Local Collaborations Programme

This programme will support collaborations led by small charities seeking to influence and achieve local or regional change around improving the social security system, improving access to suitable accommodation, and support for asylum seekers and refugees. Collaborations can apply for grants of £100,000 over two years.

We would expect your influencing work to align with at least one of these themes:

making the social security system work better for those facing the greatest challenges;
making sure people facing complex issues have access to suitable accommodation;
improving support and services for asylum seekers and refugees.
This funding cannot be used to fund direct delivery of services and is exclusively to support partnerships to influence locally and regionally.

Apply for funding under our local collaborations programme.
Deadline: Complete the Expression of Interest by 30 April 2025

Newly Reopened: One Stop Community Grants

Successful applicants will receive an initial grant of up to £1,000 and begin a partnership with their local One Stop store.

This programme is designed to support community groups or organisations operating within two miles of a One Stop store and which are;

Tackling food poverty
Supporting the vulnerable
Supporting the elderly
Supporting low-income families
Running youth sports teams
Reducing / recycling waste
Improving the environment
Please note we cannot support food bank/breakfast club projects that are requesting funding to purchase food items. However please contact your local One Stop store manager as it may be possible to discuss setting up food bank donation point at your local store. Funding can be awarded to food banks for equipment such as fridges, freezers or to purchase storage units.

The programme provides partnership as well as financial assistance. Alongside a grant of up to £1,000, and the opportunity to create a long-term tailored programme of support for successful applicants with their local One Stop Store Team. Grant recipients then work in partnership with the One Stop Store Team at their local shop to deliver support to the community.

The tailored support from the store teams will help community causes to increase or improve their service by assisting in areas such as, but not limited to, volunteering support, fundraising and awareness-raising.

Please only submit one application, so please prioritise your key project and do not submit applications for more than one project and do not submit multiple applications but with different store postcodes. If you have received funding from One Stop Community Partnerships in the last 12 months you are ineligible to apply for funding on this occasion. If you have received funding for a project more than 12 months ago, you are welcome to apply.

Deadline:

Applications open Applications close Decision Date W/C
3 March 31 March 12 May
2 June 30 June 11 August
1 September 29 September 10 November

Eling Estate

The key objectives for the Trust and Estate include:

The advancement of the Christian religion and the teaching and usage of Orthodox Churches of the East;

The relief of sickness and/or poverty;

The long-term maintenance of the character of the Estate, and the local environment, and:

Management of the woodlands and other features of the Estate for the public benefit and to facilitate public access where appropriate.

The Trustees meet three times a year to consider applications for donations to charities. Applications are generally considered where they meet all of the following criteria:

An applicant must be an established registered charity;

The grant should relate to activities in West Berkshire or neighbouring counties;

We are not able to give to overseas charities or funds;

Grants for projects rather than general running costs are favoured;

Grants should fit into one or more of the following categories:

The advancement of the Christian religion and particularly the Greek and Russian Orthodox Churches;

Community or Education facilities and provision of support;

Social and Welfare support and therapy.

Applications should be made in writing, including a copy of the most recent charity accounts. Send to:

Shoosmiths Foundation

About Us: The Shoosmiths Foundation is a grant-making body working to help address societal issues, to empower sustainable change and to improve the lives of the people and the environment in the UK.
Criteria: Offering UK-based registered charities grants for projects that advance access to justice in Shoosmiths locations across the UK. Proposed projects should achieve one of the following:
Sustaining or improving community access to specialist legal advice.
Leveraging organisation’s and educational institution’s pro bono programmes to increase access to justice.
Projects must address underrepresentation and support intersectionality more broadly. For example, projects that not only support access to justice prospects but also address other factors of underrepresentation such as:

Characteristics listed in the Equality Act 2010.
Ex-military personnel.
People with convictions.
People experiencing homelessness.
Long-term unemployed.
Refugees.
Care-experienced individuals
Grant Size: Between £25,000 and £50,000
Deadline for applications: 4pm on 18th April

Matthew Good Foundation

About Us: Grants for Good is funded by the John Good Group and is designed to direct funding only to small and growing local charities, voluntary groups or social enterprises that are making a big impact on communities, people or the environment.
Criteria: To be eligible, applicants must:
Be a local community group, charity, voluntary group or social enterprise that has a positive impact on communities, people or the environment.
Have an average income of less than £50,000 in the last 12 months.
Have a bank account in the organisation’s name
Grant Size: Up to £5,000
Deadline for applications: Ongoing

CLA Charitable Trust

About Us: 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.
Criteria: The CLA Charitable Trust awards grants to small and medium sized charities and not for profit organisations such as CICs 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. The Trust prioritises organisations working with children and young people and those disadvantaged financially, physically, mentally, or from areas of deprivation.
Examples of eligible activities engaging young people and communities in these areas include, but are not limited to:

Farms providing day or residential experiences for disabled or disadvantaged young people.
Growing projects including horticultural therapy and community projects supporting people through outdoor activities and gardening.
Forest school type activities giving people the opportunity to utilise their outdoor spaces for the benefit of their mental and physical wellbeing.
Conservation and environmental projects giving people the chance to learn about the natural environment and how to care for it.
Grant Size: Up to: £5,000
Deadline for applications: Ongoing

Libraries Improvement Fund – Arts Council England

This fund will enable library services across England to invest in a range of projects to upgrade buildings and technology so they are better placed to respond to the changing ways people are using them.

Local authorities can apply for capital expenditure between £50,000 to £500,000.

Expressions of interest will open on 6 May and close on 30 May 2025.

The Big Bike Revival – Cycling UK

The Big Bike Revival is an intervention for adults aimed at encouraging an uptake in cycling. By providing solutions to perceived barriers, adults are enabled to learn to how to cycle and to increase their cycling levels for short, everyday journeys. Events focus on presenting cycling as a practical, normal and habitual way to get around locally.

The Big Bike Revival is delivered across England by a wide range of community-embedded partners. Typically, these are volunteer-led groups, not-for-profit organisations and social enterprises that are rooted in local communities and working to address a range of local needs. Such groups can apply for grants to run events as part of Big Bike Revival.

Grant funding is available for any amount up to £3,500.

For Grants of £2,000, partners should be able to deliver at least 6 events.
For Grants of £3,500, partners should be able to deliver at least 10 events.
Events must take place between 18 April and 31 October 2025. The deadline for applications is 14 July.

Physical Activity Grants Programme – Parkinson’s UK

This programme supports activity providers, communities, networks, organisations and others to develop opportunities for people with Parkinson’s to become and stay active.

Projects must run for a minimum of 12 weeks and a maximum of 52 weeks and must start within 12 weeks of receiving the grant.

Applications can be made for a minimum of £500 up to a maximum of £3,000. Up to 100% of costs are available if required,

Applications opened on 10 March and will remain open until all funds are allocated.

Football Foundation grants

Football Foundation grants are available to football clubs, schools, councils and local sports associations under the following categories:

Goalposts
Storage containers
Portable floodlights
Changing pavilions and clubhouses
3G pitch maintenance machinery and equipment
Fencing
3G pitches
Creation of new grass pitches
Small-sided facility improvements
Grass pitch improvement
Grass pitch drainage
Grass pitch maintenance machinery and equipment
Premier League defibrillator fund
Premier League stadium fund
Looking for funding | Football Foundation

Skipton Building Society Charitable Foundation

The Charitable Foundation has identified two focus areas through which it aims to drive social impact.

Helping people experiencing hardship and/or underserved groups to:

access a place to call home.
and improve financial wellbeing.
The trustees will select charities based on their alignment with one or both focus areas. The Foundation has committed to fund UK registered charities, where successful, up to a maximum of £10,000.

The current application round will close on 1 May 2025.

Community Tree Planting Fund – Network Rail

The Tree Council and Network Rail work in partnership to deliver a programme of community tree planting. Together, they have already planted more than 300,000 trees in 108 communities across the UK.

Funding for projects is awarded in three bands:

Main Grants – Projects between £2,500 and £5,000
Large Grants – Projects between £5,000 and £10,000
Flagship Grants – Projects over £10,000 and up to £15,000
Flagship Grants will be awarded in limited numbers to those projects that deliver a significant impact across our programme priorities.

Funding is now open and all details are on the website.

Network Rail Community Tree Planting Fund – The Tree Council

Healthy Heart Grants – Heart Research UK
Healthy Heart Grants of up to £15,000 are available for community projects aimed at supporting adults to reduce their risk of coronary heart disease, helping them to live healthier, happier and longer lives. The grants are available to charities and community interest companies across the UK.

The application windows for 2025 in England are:

England North: 7 May to 4 June
England South: 16 July to 13 August
Healthy Heart Grants – Heart Research UK

Youth Music Trailblazer Fund

The Youth Music Trailblazer fund offers grants of £2,000 to £30,000 to organisations in England to run projects for children and young people (25 or under) to make, learn and earn in music. The project should trial work or test a new way of working, sustain a grassroots programme or disrupt the status quo (or all three!).

Your work must meet one of the Fund’s themes:

Early years
Disabled, d/Deaf and neurodivergent young people
Youth justice system
Young people facing barriers
Young adults
Organisations and the workforce.
The deadline for applications is 11 April 2025.

Community support small grants – Trusthouse Charitable Foundation

Single year grants between £2,000 and £10,000 are available to charities and not for profit organisations for core costs, salaries, running and project costs. Projects must have a focus on Community Support and address urban and rural deprivation in the UK.

if you are located in a rural area, you must be in the bottom 50% most deprived areas according to the Index of Multiple Deprivation. Your annual income must not exceed £250,000 and you can secure 50% of the total project costs.

This is a rolling programme with no deadlines.

Neighbourhood Planning Grant Funding – Locality

Government has confirmed the continued importance attached to supporting neighbourhood planning and on 1 October 2024 launched the procurement process for the new contract for Neighbourhood Planning Support Services for 2025 to 2027. Government intend to sign the new contract in April 2025 for the new services to open from July 2025.

To read more on funding opportunities, click the Rural Services Network April 2025 Funding Digest.

Home Instead Charities

Money raised from our dedicated network of Home Instead Offices and external supporters fund groups who support the mental, physical, and emotional wellbeing of ageing adults.

If you are a small grass roots organisation you can apply for funding up to £500. If you are a small local registered charity you can apply for funding up to £1,500. If your group is a registered charity, you must attach a copy of your governing document AND your last set of accounts. If either of these documents are missing, we will not be able to process your application.

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. The project must support its members through activities and projects that support wellbeing or reduce social isolation and/or loneliness. Your group must be open and inclusive irrespective of race, religion, disability, sex or sexual orientation.

We will only fund individuals if it is to provide access to your group, i.e. transport costs or communications devices to access your groups activities. We will only fully fund grant requests from organisations who hold no more than 3 months operating costs in reserve. If you have more than this, the charity will only co-fund your project up to a maximum 50% of the funding required.

We will consider applications from groups, associations and charities that do not service the over 50s directly but the project they require funding for does, i.e., a local school wishes to hold a special afternoon tea for its local care home residents.

If you are a registered charity your application must be accompanied by a copy of your constitution and annual accounts.

The National Lottery – Reaching Communities

About Us: With this funding we’ll help strengthen communities and improve lives across England. Our funding is available to all communities. But our priority is the places, people and communities that need it most.
Criteria: Voluntary or community organisations in England. Our priorities are to fund projects that:
support places, people or communities experiencing poverty, disadvantage or discrimination
and
support people and communities to shape the decisions that affect their lives.
And your project must achieve one of our missions. Which are to support communities to:

Come together, through inclusive places, spaces and activities (either physical or virtual). Especially for communities where people are least able to come together.
Help children and young people thrive, by developing positive social and emotional skills.
Be healthier, by addressing health inequalities. And helping prevent poor health.
Be environmentally sustainable. By engaging with climate issues and having a positive environmental impact. And improving access to quality natural spaces.
Grant Size: £20,001 to £500,000
Deadline for applications: Rolling

Thank you to RSN Online, Volunteer Centre West Berkshire, Slough CVS and Wokingham & Bracknell InVOLve for the information contained in this article.


Village and Community Halls: Your Essential Guide to Building Surveys

Volunteers managing over 10,000 rural community halls across England are now receiving expert guidance to help them commission the right type of building survey.

This valuable resource was developed by ACTion with Communities in Cumbria, who, through their work with rural halls across the region, discovered a gap in knowledge among funders, surveyors, and village hall committees. There was often confusion around the specifics of what’s required when commissioning and carrying out surveys on village halls and similar community spaces.

The guide has been expertly crafted by Ben Stagg, Director of Stagg Architects, who also authored ACRE’s Net Zero Design Guide in 2024.

The comprehensive guidance takes hall committees step-by-step through the process of obtaining a building survey, explaining the various types of surveys available, and offering advice on how to engage with a surveyor. A dedicated section for surveyors provides useful insights that committees can share when commissioning their own surveys. There’s also an in-depth chapter focusing on energy surveys, ensuring your hall can be both sustainable and efficient.

Why Surveys Matter

Surveys play a crucial role in maintaining the condition of your hall and ensuring that any alterations or improvements are both appropriate and beneficial. They not only provide an accurate description of the current state of the building but also help identify areas for improvement and assess potential recommendations for future work.

Julie Minns, Member of Parliament for Carlisle and North Cumbria, commented:

“This guide is absolutely invaluable. Community buildings are essential hubs for local people across the country, and particularly so in rural areas where isolation—both social and geographical—can be a significant challenge. The diverse range of activities taking place in community centres across North Cumbria demonstrates just how crucial resources like this guide from ACRE are.”

Support from the National Lottery Community Fund

The guide has been made possible thanks to the support of the National Lottery Community Fund, through their Northumberland, Durham and Cumbria Community Places initiative. The Fund has long been committed to supporting projects that enhance local community spaces.

The National Lottery Community Fund provides grants to hundreds of village halls each year. Duncan Nicholson, Regional Head of Funding for the North East and Cumbria, said:

“Thanks to the generosity of National Lottery players, we’re able to support the vital and innovative work carried out by projects like this. Communities across Northumberland, Durham, and Cumbria will continue to benefit from well-maintained, accessible community venues that are not only fit for purpose today, but are also safeguarded for future generations.”

Download the Guide

To access the full guide, click here.


Who’s your local hero?

For the fourth year, BBC Radio Berkshire wants to celebrate and say thank you to people living in our villages and towns who make where we live a better place.

Every day we hear stories of people doing incredible things for each other and their communities. Now it’s time to recognise them for all their hard work.

Whether it’s caring for someone in need, being a brilliant neighbour, or inspiring children in the classroom, if you know someone who is really making a difference to your life or where you live, then you can nominate them for an Award.

There are 8 categories:

  1. The Volunteer Award – awarded to an individual who makes a notable difference to their community by giving their time voluntarily to help others.
  2. The Young Hero Award new – awarded to someone under 16 who has made a positive impact in their community or achieved something exceptional.
  3. The Great Neighbour Award – awarded to an individual who helps to make the neighbourhood a better place to live or work in, either on a regular basis or through a single act of kindness.
  4. The Active Award new – awarded to an individual or group of people who have used physical activity or sport as a way of improving the lives of those in their community.
  5. The Animal Award – awarded to either a remarkable animal that improves people’s lives, or an individual or group of people who improve the welfare of animals.
  6. The Green Award – awarded to an individual or group of people who improve or conserve their local environment.
  7. The Fundraiser Award – awarded to an individual or group of people who have gone the extra mile to raise funds for a good cause.
  8. The Community Group Award – awarded to a group of people who have helped to change the lives of others within their community.

Nominations are now open and will close on 31st March 2025 at 5:00pm.

The winners will be announced at our Make a Difference awards ceremony in September.

You can nominate someone you know here http://www.bbc.co.uk/makeadifference, where you can also see full Terms and our Privacy Notice.


Funding Opportunities in March

Screwfix Foundation

We are passionate about making a difference to those in need. We are a grant-making charity with a clear charitable purpose to support projects that improve, fix and repair buildings, homes and facilities specifically used by PEOPLE IN NEED throughout the UK. We donate grants in the region of £5,000 to charities and not for profit organisations. Prioritising those that will create a longer-term difference and where our donation will make an impact and fund the total cost (or the majority) of a project. The Screwfix Foundation is governed by the Board of Trustees and managed by The Screwfix Foundation Manager.

To be considered for a grant, your organisation AND project must meet the criteria noted below: Organisation criteria Project eligibility Your organisation must be a charity or not for profit company based in the UK and:

• Registered as a charity in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland; or • Registered as a Not for Profit company at Companies House or the registered on the FCA mutuals register. We fund projects which improve a physical building (or land attached to it) that is used by people in need. The types of projects we fund are: • Improved energy efficient lighting & heating • Installation of new kitchen, bathroom etc. • Installation of a sensory room • General painting & decorating • Improving safety and security of a building We are unable to donate products or vouchers from Screwfix and unable to fund: • Items that are easily removable from a property such as soft furnishings, curtains, tables, chairs etc. • White goods or electronic items • Grants for research • Purchase of vehicles • Purchase of garden machinery or removeable furniture such as lawnmowers, chairs or plants. • Repayment of loans • Annual Rent or service charges • Sponsorships • Salaries We do not support projects which will used by general members of the public i.e., sports clubs and associations, uniformed groups such as scout and girl guide groups or organisations that support wildlife or animals as their main beneficiary

Deadline: Rolling

Bracknell Forest: Dementia Friendly Homes

Applications accepted on a rolling basis.
Bracknell Forest Council has grants available, up to £2,000, for people with dementia to help make their homes more dementia friendly. Works could include changing lights to improve brightness and visibility, redecorating walls to make rooms feel calmer, replacing floor coverings that cause confusion or safety issues, ensuring safe access to the property, and/or provision of a safe space. This list is not exhaustive and each case will be considered with help and advice from our occupational therapy service.

Heathrow Community Trust – Environment and Sustainability

About Us: Are you working to reduce energy consumption, tackle climate change, boost recycling or create a nature reserve? Do you have ideas to make your community more sustainable? Are you encouraging wildlife back into your neighbourhood? If so, you could qualify for a grant from our Environment and Sustainability Grants programme.
Criteria: Available for groups including charities, voluntary groups, schools, colleges, local authorities and Community Interest Companies working in Ealing, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Slough, Spelthorne, Richmond, Runnymede, South Bucks, or Windsor & Maidenhead.
Grant Size: up to £15,000 per year for up to two years
Deadline for applications: 3rd April 2025

Asda Foundation Young Futures Fund

About Us: Supporting grassroots groups to improve mental health and wellbeing for teens and young people (13-21 years) to help build better futures.
Criteria: Not-for-profit groups and organisations with an income of less than £250,000 and who already have an existing service for young people within the 13-21 age group can apply.
Applicants need to meet at least one of the following objectives:

Provide services that support, educate and empower.
Connect young people to their peers.
Support rehabilitation and recovery and provide shelter.
Deliver activities / programmes that improve physical health and wellbeing.
The funding can be used for a number of different things. Examples of the kinds of items and services that could be funded include, but are not limited to:

Intervention and prevention programmes to address social issues.
Essential items for crisis support, such as clothes, food and hygiene items for a homeless shelter focusing on young people.
Delivery of specialist support or services or speakers.
Group drop-in and talking sessions.
Workshops to upskill and deliver life skills (cooking, finance, employment, CV writing).
Resources for recreational activities, eg, craft materials, board games
Sports kit and/or equipment (cap £500).
Volunteering costs (cap £100 per person).
Peer support events, and activities that bring people together.
The grant must be used and projects completed by September 2025.

Grant Size: up to £1,000
Deadline for applications: The application window opens on 27th February 2025 (noon) and closes on 13th March 2025 (noon)

The Arts Society

About Us: We believe in Arts for All and will use our grants to make a positive contribution to people’s lives through the arts. Never has there been a greater need to support our local arts organisations and museums and continue the vital contribution of skills development in the arts and heritage sector.
Criteria: Available for UK-registered charities with an annual turnover of less than £3 million to deliver projects across all aspects of the arts, crafts, and heritage and support local and regional art museums and organisations.
Funding is available for projects such as:

Projects that support a wide range of activities to introduce people of all ages and backgrounds to artistic experiences and practice, such as the development and training of skills in the arts, crafts, and heritage through bursaries, sponsorships, and crafts apprenticeships.
Support for regional museums, galleries, and arts organisations, such as:
Special projects.
Displays.
Internships and part-time posts.
Training.
Conservation activities.
Regional and local theatres and performing arts spaces and groups.

Grant Size: up to £2,000
Deadline for applications: 31st March 2025

Small Charity Week match funding campaign

About Us: Seven-day online campaign, running between 23rd-30th June 2025. Donations made during the campaign will be doubled through Big Give’s match funding model, thanks to the generosity of Champion funders, including the players of People’s Postcode Lottery. This means each pound donated goes twice as far in empowering small charities in their mission.
Criteria: Charities with an annual income between £5,000 and £1 million are eligible to apply for match funding, helping them to raise vital funds and maximise their impact.
Grant Size: Charities seeking to raise either £500, £1,000, £2500, £5,000, or £10,000 in public donations (to be doubled by the match funds).
Deadline for applications: 2nd April 2025

Turners Court Youth Trust

Applications are considered from registered charities and small community groups whose work is based around the Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire region and is focused on the needs of vulnerable and disaffected children and young people up to the age of 23.

It should be noted that the Trust can only make grants available for projects or groups that exist for charitable purposes.

  • Projects will be assessed as to the positive difference they will make to children and young people with regard to one or more of the following:
  • Early life experiences, particularly for those whose personal circumstances are challenging and difficult.
  • Emotional, social and physical safety and/or well-being.
  • Personal safety and protection from harm and neglect.
  • Involvement in activities that help them overcome barriers to education and employment and to achieve their full potential in life.
  • Development of independent life and work skills.
  • Prevention from entering the judicial system.

Ordinarily one-off grants of between £250 and £5,000 are awarded for appropriate projects which can demonstrate that they will make a difference to children and young people. However, depending on the circumstances and subject to approval of Trustees larger grants may be considered.

Your application will be considered by the Trustees, and you will be contacted soon after their decision, which is final.

Please then send your application to Turners Court Youth Trust either by: Email to grants@turnerscourt.org.uk Or post to the registered address: 30 High Street, Wendover, Buckinghamshire HP22 6EA and mark the envelope ‘TCYT Grant Application’. Your application will be considered by the Trustees, and you will be contacted soon after their decision, which is final.

Hall and Woodhouse Community Chest

Applications are welcome from any voluntary or community organisation that is based, or works in, our trading area across the south of England, from Devon to Sussex and in the north from Bristol to Twickenham. NB: Awards will only be considered for organisations with a total income of more than £200,000 in very special circumstances.

Grants or funds raised could be used to support the following:

Youth work and activities
Sports and social clubs
Elderly and people with disabilities
Health and social care
Local arts and culture
Conservation and the environment
Please note: Applications will not be considered from national organisations or those that are profit making or political.

Groups can apply for grants or fundraising support ranging from £300 and £3,000 to help achieve their aims. These grants or fundraising commitments could be used towards things such as equipment and furniture, training, transport, professional assistance, specific project resources or operational costs that will help your cause.

The Four Barrows Foundation

We give grants to Primary Schools and Charities who provide opportunities for pre-school and primary age children. We believe these organisations are most likely to understand the areas, children and groups who are likely to benefit from extra support. We are not able to support any other organisation.

We support organisations in specific areas – because they are local to our trustees: Lothian and Fife Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey.

We aim to provide annual grants between £1,000 and £3,000. We understand these efforts often require a long-term commitment, so funding may be provided for more than one year.

Newly Opened: Warburtons Community Grants

Warburtons Community Grants provides small grants up to £400 to support charitable organisations towards broader activities which improve Health, Place or Skills for families in their community.

Based on our localism approach, our community investment funds are allocated to our local bakeries and depots. This helps our Community Champions to make the best decisions for our local communities. We will use your postcode to understand which of our sites is closest to you and they will then receive the application and make a decision.

Deadline: 5th May 2025

Project Groundwater Innovation Fund

Grants are available for charities, small-to-medium enterprises, voluntary and community groups, and other organisations across the Berkshire Downs (Lambourn Valley) to deliver projects that address groundwater flooding while benefitting local communities.

Application deadline: 17th March 2025 (9am)

Grow Wild Youth Grants

Grants are available for young individuals (aged 16 to 25 years) in the UK to deliver a creative project that celebrates why UK native plants and/or fungi are so special. Young people must have a supporting organisation to help them deliver the project. An webinar giving information about the scheme will be held on 26 February 2025 (12:00 to 12:45pm) – you can register via the link below.

Application deadline: 19th March 2025 (3pm)

Peter Harrison Foundation

Active Lives Funding:
The Trustees have decided to focus our limited resources by prioritising applications which meet all of the following criteria:

work with people living with disabilities in the top 10% of areas of deprivation (Indices of Multiple Deprivation decile 1) AND
from organisations with a track record of working with this population AND
have a robust plan for wider impact of the project through dissemination, training etc


To avoid wasting your time, please ensure you meet our revised eligibility and funding criteria before starting an application.

Type of funding: We will consider applications for capital, project or core funding.

Location of project: Anywhere in the United Kingdom. Grant amount: We accept applications for £5,001 – £30,000. Grant period: You can apply for a grant spread over 1, 2 or 3 years

Positive Futures Projects:

The Trustees have decided to focus our limited resources by prioritising applications which meet all of the following criteria:

work with children and young people living in the top 10% of areas of deprivation (Indices of Multiple Deprivation decile 1) AND
from organisations with a track record of working with this population AND
have a robust plan for wider impact of the project through dissemination, training etc
To avoid wasting your time, please ensure you meet our revised eligibility and funding criteria before starting an application.

Type of funding: We will consider applications for capital, project or core funding.

Location of project: South East of England (Berkshire; Buckinghamshire; Hampshire; Isle of Wight; Kent; Oxfordshire; Surrey; East Sussex; and West Sussex only).

Grant amount: We accept applications for £5,001 – £30,000. Grant period: You can apply for a grant spread over 1, 2 or 3 years

The Alpkit Foundation

About Us: It makes small awards that support grass roots, direct action projects where a positive difference can be made to remove the barriers in getting outdoors and experience the benefits of time spent outdoors.
Criteria: Community groups, schools and organisations based and working within the UK can apply for grants to support:
Diversity and inclusion projects that engage individual and groups from a diverse range of backgrounds.
Environmental projects that seek to support, conserve, or generate understanding of our environment and wild places.
Health projects enabling people to gain physical and mental wellbeing from the Great Outdoors.
Education projects such as First Aid, D of E, Forest Schools and Mountain Leader.
Participation projects that get more people experiencing the Great Outdoors.
Grant Size: Between £50 and £500
Deadline for applications: Applications can be submitted at any time and will be considered every two months.

Grants For Good

Applications close on Saturday 15th March.
These grants are designed to direct funding only to small and growing local charities, voluntary groups or social enterprises that are making a big impact on communities, people or the environment. To be eligible, applicants must be a local community group, charity, voluntary group or social enterprise that has a positive impact on communities, people or the environment, must have an average income of less than £50,000 in the last 12 months, and must have a bank account in the organisation’s name.
The top five shortlisted projects will receive between £2,000 and £5,000. Find out more.

Community Impact Fund

Applications close on Thurs 20th March.
Small grants of up to £1,000 are available for charities, CIOs, and CICs across the UK to deliver projects and activities that benefit local communities across the themes of environment, sustainability, creativity, and local issues.
By fostering innovation and collaboration, we aim to enhance the well-being of our community and promote sustainable development.
We invite community groups and charitable organisations to apply for funding to bring their impactful projects to life.

The Stanley Smith Horticultural Trust

The objectives of the Trust are:

  • to promote horticulture;
  • to promote the conservation of the physical and natural environment by promoting biological diversity through the application of horticultural techniques
  • to promote the creation, development, preservation and maintenance of gardens (preference will normally, but not exclusively, be given to gardens accessible to the public); and
  • the advancement of horticultural education.

The Trust achieves its objectives by making grants to individuals, organisations and institutions carrying out projects of significance to:

  • horticulture;
  • gardening; or
  • botany with a strong horticultural element.

The following is a non-exhaustive list of typical projects.

  • restoring gardens of historic interest;
  • developing new gardens, or new garden areas within existing gardens, for public access and enjoyment;
  • exhibitions, book publications, research and educational programmes relating to horticulture;
  • expeditions and travel to study, collect and protect plants of scientific and horticultural value;
  • study-visits by horticulturists or botanists with strong horticultural links, and
  • gardeners’ training schemes run by appropriate organisations (but not to individuals, see Training and Traineeships).

The maximum grant is £5,000 but some organisations only require modest sums and applicants are welcome to apply for grants of less than £500. Typical grants are usually in the range of £3,500- £5,000.

Only one grant is usually made for each project but it is possible for subsequent grants to be made to the same individual or organisation for a new project or an additional component of the original project over two or three years. 

Deadline: Grants are normally awarded twice a year, in April and September (following application deadlines of 15 February and 15 August).

Rural Funding Digest March 2025

Thank you to Slough CVS, West Berkshire Volunteer Centre and Bracknell & Wokingham InVOLve.