Funding News

This page will be updated regularly so please check in when you can. See Latest News section.

Links is here to help you.  Should you need help finding funding or completing an application please fill in a funding questionnaire! 

Upcoming Deadlines

Screwfix Foundation

Deadline: 10th May 2024

The trade retailers Screwfix established the Screwfix Foundation in 2013 to support local projects that improve, repair and maintain homes and community facilities used by those in need in the UK.

More than a decade later, the Foundation continues to offer grants with money raised through staff fundraising and customer donations.

Local registered charities and not-for-profit organisations can apply for grants of up to £5,000 for projects which improve a physical building (or land attached to it) that is used by people in need.

The funding is to be used for the following types of projects:

• Improved energy efficient lighting and heating.
• Installation of new kitchen, bathroom etc.
• Installation of a sensory room.
• General painting and decorating.
• Improving safety and security of a building.

Registered charities, Community Benefit Societies, Cooperative Societies and Community Interest Companies can apply as long as they have suitable governance to manage the fund and are supporting people in need whether by reason of financial hardship, sickness, disability or other disadvantage or distress.

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Suez Communities Fund

Deadline: 15th May 2024

Suez Communities Trust is offering grants of between £3,000 and £50,000 for not-for-profit groups across England to deliver projects that make physical improvements to community facilities, or repair buildings of religious worship or buildings of architectural or historic interest.

Funding is available for capital improvement works to public amenity projects for community use. Examples may include:

• Village hall improvements.
• Nature reserves and conservation.
• Village greens.
• Community centres.
• Public playgrounds.
• Cycle paths.
• Sports fields and facilities.
• Country parks.
• Historic buildings, structures, or sites.

Improvements to places of religious worship will only be considered if they are Grade I designated. Projects to improve other historic buildings, structures or sites must be Grade I, II or II* or have another significant heritage designation, such as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

Projects must be in communities surrounding a qualifying SUEZ Recycling and Recovery site and must be available and open to the public as a minimum for 4 evenings a week, 2 days a week, or 104 days a year.

There is a two-stage application process. Groups must first submit an online Expression of Interest but be invited to submit a full application. There are typically four funding rounds each year.

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B&Q Foundation

Deadline: 17th May 2024

The B&Q Foundation Grants programme is provided by B&Q Foundation and managed by Neighbourly, a platform used by local Good Causes across the UK and Ireland.

A wide range of UK registered charities based and working in the UK can apply for one-off grants of up to £5,000 for garden projects or up to £10,000 for building or indoor projects.

The funding is for registered charities working with people most in need because of homelessness, financial hardship, sickness, disability or other disadvantage.

Charities can use the grants to decorate, renovate or create spaces (indoors and outdoors) with the aim of making people feel at home and having a sense of belonging. Projects could include creating community gardens, redecorating properties, installing new boilers, and creating new buildings or rooms.

The funding will cover the full cost for the completion of the project, including staff time required.

Projects need to be delivered within six months of receiving the grant.

There are three more application windows in 2024.

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Wellbeing of Women - Women’s Health Community Fund

Deadline: 19th May 2024

Working in partnership with Holland & Barrett, the charity Wellbeing of Women is offering grants of up to £5,000 to small, grassroots organisations and community groups to deliver health information and support to women, girls and people from underrepresented groups in the UK.

The funding is for projects that address the following key points:

• Projects that aim to improve information, education and support for menstrual health, related gynaecological conditions e.g. PCOS, endometriosis, adenomyosis, fibroids, PMDD, and menopause.
• Support people and groups that are often underrepresented in mainstream healthcare, information and services, for example people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds (BAME/global majority), LGBTQI+, people living with disabilities, deaf people, blind and partially sighted people, people experiencing homelessness, addiction, people living in areas of economic deprivation.

Grants of up to £5,000 are available to spend across 12 months. Funds will be distributed in two tranches, 50% at the beginning of the project and 50% upon receipt of a six month report.

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SPAR Community Cashback 2024

Deadline: 22nd May 2024

For a third year in a row, SPAR shoppers can apply for a grant of up to £10,000 for a local voluntary or community organisation or charity they feel deserves funding.

Applicants for grants are open to UK residents (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland mainland only) aged 16 years or over.

All applicants need to do is share the exceptional contribution that a local organisation has made to their local community and what the grant would be used for.

The grants will be given based on the strength of the applicant’s story, the recipient’s levels of dedication to their community and the credibility of what the grant would be spent on and its impact for the local community.

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Youth Endowment Fund

Deadline: 24th May 2024

The Youth Endowment Fund was established in 2019 by children’s charity Impetus with a £200 million endowment and 10-year mandate from the Home Office. It is now half-way through its 10-year endowment, having funded hundreds of interventions for violence affecting young people across England and Wales and evaluated their impact ‘at a scale that’s never been done before’.

The newest grant round focuses on psychological therapies – talking therapies delivered to children and young people who are at risk of becoming involved in crime and violence (known as secondary prevention) or those already involved in the youth justice system (known as tertiary prevention).

Applications can be made by any registered organisation including registered charities, companies, statutory bodies and community interest companies (CICs) supporting support children and young people in England and/or Wales. Partnership applications are accepted provided there is a lead organisation and the partners work as one entity.

A workshop will be held on 16 April (10:00).  Registration is required and can be done on the YEF website. Groups that miss the workshops will be able to access a recording which will be posted on the YEF website after the session.

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NFU Mutual Charitable Trust

Deadline: 24th May 2024

NFU Mutual Charitable Trust is offering grants of between £1,000 and £50,000 for organisations working in agriculture, rural development, and insurance across the UK to deliver projects and activities across one or more of the Trust’s main objectives:

• To advance the education of the public using research and dissemination of information concerning agriculture.

• To advance the education of young people within rural areas.

• To relieve poverty within rural areas.

• To promote the benefit and social welfare of inhabitants of rural communities by associating together with the inhabitants and local authorities, voluntary and other organisations to advance education and leisure.

• To promote research into agricultural-associated activities.

• To advance the education of the public using research and dissemination of information concerning insurance.

Priority will be given to larger initiatives that would have a significant impact on rural communities, as well as initiatives in the areas of education of young people in rural areas and relief of poverty within rural areas.

Derbyshire Voluntary Action - Health & Wellbeing Grants

Deadline: 31st May 2024

The purpose of the Health and Wellbeing Grant is to support new and existing not-for-profit voluntary and community groups/organisations in Bolsover, Chesterfield and North East Derbyshire whose work strengthens the local community and improves the health and wellbeing of their beneficiaries. Funding is available for additional one-off costs which are over and above the group’s general running costs.  This expenditure relates to a particular project or activity the group would like to run in the next 12 months.

Examples could include:

• Materials or resources needed for an activity.
• Costs associated with a special event.
• Sessional worker to lead a workshop.

Groups can apply for up to £1,000 in each area.

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Biffa Award 2024 Partnership Grants Scheme

Deadline: 31st May 2024

Biffa Award is currently accepting Expressions of Interest to its 2024 Partnership Grants Scheme.

Grants of between £250,000 and £1 million will support capital projects that address either of the following themes (the project must not cross over the two themes):

Built Environment projects should restore, modernise and/or improve facilities such as cultural, heritage or visitor centres. The facility should be inclusive and promote learning, curiosity and participation to large numbers of visitors on a national scale.

Natural Environment projects should restore and/or improve the environment and the natural systems or habitats that support it. Projects should be working to Biodiversity 2020: A Strategy for England’s Wildlife and Ecosystem Services, its predecessor or a Local Biodiversity Action Plan.

To be eligible, projects must start in February 2025 and be completed by February 2026 and:

Be located within 15 miles of a significant Biffa Operation or active Biffa Landfill site.

Be located within 10 miles of any licensed landfill site (not necessarily owned by Biffa Group Limited) in England and Northern Ireland.

Have a project site open for a minimum of 104 days of full public access to the project per year.

Applications can be made for 100% of the projects costs; however, only 90% of the grant can be paid by Biffa Award using Landfill Tax Credits. The remaining 10% needs to be provided by another source.

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Latest News

Sport England - Movement Fund

The new £160 million, four-year Movement Fund offers grants of between £300 and £15,000, crowdfunding pledges, and resources to improve physical activity opportunities for the people and communities who need it the most across England.

The new fund replaces Sport England’s existing Small Grants Programme, which is now closed to applications, and Active Together fund, which will close soon.

The Movement Fund has been established to help close the ‘significant activity gap’ between people based on where they live, how affluent they are, their sex, ethnic background or whether they have a disability or long-term health condition.

The funding is intended for local not-for-profit groups and organisations whose projects promote physical activity, including active travel, walking, cycling, dance, fitness and sporting activities.

Priority will be given to projects where there is the most need.

There is particular interest in projects providing opportunities for groups facing barriers to activity, such as: 

• People living on low incomes.
• Disabled people or those with long-term health conditions.
• Older people.
• People from culturally diverse communities.
• Pregnant women and parents with very young children.
• Girls aged 5-16.
• LGBTQ+ people.
• People who are in foster care.
• People who provide care without pay.
• And in projects that address combined hurdles, such as people with long-term health conditions alongside caring responsibilities.

The funding could cover, for example:

• Equipment: support purchasing new or improved equipment that’s required for the delivery of the activity.
• Refurbishing or upgrading facilities: support to improve or create spaces that can provide opportunities to get more people active.
• Developing new capabilities and leadership skills: providing formal training for staff and volunteers to improve their skills and leadership abilities to help improve how the group tackles inequalities and gets more people active.
• Delivery costs: paying for the people and facilities needed to deliver the project, where these are new costs to the project.
• Emergency relief: helping with costs during a crisis, like damage from extreme weather, that could not have been avoided or insured.

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VCSE Energy Efficiency Scheme - Final Round

The £25.5 million VCSE Energy Efficiency Scheme has reopened for applications from voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations based in England.

The VCSE Energy Efficiency Scheme is provided by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) as part of a package of more than £100 million of support being delivered by the Government to help frontline delivery organisations in England with the increased cost of living. The scheme is delivered by a consortium of partners, led by Groundwork UK and supported by Energy Saving Trust, Centre for Sustainable Energy, Locality and Social Investment Business.

There are two elements to the scheme:

• A free Independent Energy Assessment (IEA) - eligible organisations can apply for the cost and delivery of a comprehensive evaluation of their building’s energy usage, efficiency, and potential for energy savings, conducted by a qualified and experienced independent energy assessor. The assessment includes gathering data on costs and energy usage, examining existing systems, providing recommendations, estimating savings, and outlining an action plan. These assessments will be useful to organisations whether or not they apply for the second element. The deadline for IEA applications is 20 June 2024.
• Capital grants of between £2,000 and £150,000 can be used to install capital energy efficiency measures, identified in the IEA to reduce the building’s energy costs. All projects funded by Capital grants must be completed by March 2025. The deadline for Capital grant applications is 14 August 2024.

Applications will be considered from organisations with charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purposes, based and working in England, delivering frontline services or managing a building as a hub that delivers multiple frontline services.

The scheme’s intended outcome is to support diverse organisation types and ensure a good geographic and demographic spread of funding, so these factors will be considered during assessment.

The deadline for Independent Energy Assessment applications is 20 June 2024. The deadline for Capital Grant applications is 14 August 2024.

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Barchester Healthcare Foundation

Barchester Healthcare Foundation is offering grants of up to £2,500 for small community groups and local charities across England, Scotland, and Wales for projects that help reduce isolation and loneliness, promote group activities, and generally improve mobility and quality of life for older people and adults with physical, learning, or mental disabilities. 

Funding is intended to help small community groups and local charities with the following: 

• Activities.
• Equipment and materials for use by members.
• Member transport.
• Day trips, outings, and group holidays in the UK.

Priority will be given to innovative projects that help older people and those with a disability to get active, meet people, and reduce isolation. 

Funding is for small and local groups, and groups with financial reserves in the hundreds of thousands or millions are unlikely to receive support.

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Platinum Jubilee Village Hall Improvement Grant

The aim of the Platinum Jubilee Village Hall Improvement Grant Fund is to support the modernisation and improvement of village halls.  This is so that they are fit for purpose and can provide activities which seek to achieve one or more of the following outcomes for their communities:

• Improved health and/or wellbeing and/or reduction in rural loneliness.
• Positive impact on the local environment, contributes towards net zero.
• Support for the local rural economy.
• Promotion of community cohesion.

The town or village in which it is situated must have a population of 10,000 or less.  A variety of charitable organisations can apply. Multi-purpose Church Halls, Scout and Guide buildings may also eligible.

Grants are between £2,000 and £5,000 which will be 20% of your capital project costs including any VAT. Smaller projects will be prioritised.

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Morrisons Foundation

Based in Bradford, the supermarket chain Morrisons established the Morrisons Foundation in 2015 to support local good causes across Great Britain. 

Nearly 10 years later, the Foundation welcomes applications from registered charities in England, Scotland and Wales.

Grants of up to £10,000 (previously the maximum grant was £25,000) are available for specific projects that help to improve people’s lives.

To be eligible, projects must address at least one of the Foundation’s funding objectives of:

• Tackling poverty and social deprivation.
• Enhancing community spaces, facilities and services.
• Improving health and wellbeing.

The funding is to be used for capital spend or direct project delivery and must wholly fund the project.

Priority is given to smaller charities with an income of less than £1 million, though applications will be considered from larger charities.

The Foundation will not generally support salaries and other running costs or ongoing service delivery.

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Material Focus - Electricals Recycling Fund

Material Focus, an independent not-for-profit organisation whose mission is to stop electricals from being hoarded and thrown away, is once again offering grants to communities across the UK to reuse and recycle small household electricals.

A total of £750,000 is being made available in 2024 to support two types of projects:

• Growing existing services – grants of up to £100,000 for projects that grow existing collection methods for small electricals. This could be community drop points in libraries and other community locations, adding cages under refuse collection vehicles, bring banks/WEEE banks.
• Innovating new methods – grants of up to £50,000 to come up with new approaches to repair, reuse and/or recycle electricals, for example, collection points at large offices/campuses, drop-offs at post offices, major supermarkets, large shopping centres, retail parks, collection of waste electricals using the return journey/spare capacity during collection/delivery of parcels, or projects that support tackling the growing concerns around digital inclusion.

The funding can be used for:

• The purchase of new bins/collection points (‘bring banks’).
• The adaptation of waste collection vehicles to include cages for kerbside WEEE.
• Vehicle rental.
• Installation of bins.
• Communication and marketing materials.
• Staffing costs to cover the time spent planning and delivering the project.
• Salaries if the person is working to deliver the funded project.

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Paul Hamlyn Foundation - Migration Fund

The Fund has reopened after a pause and is now focused on supporting not-for-profit organisations in the UK who are working towards the Foundation’s vision of a world in which everyone is free to move and no is forced to move.

Grants of up to £60,000 per year for three to four years (a total of £240,000) or grants up to £50,000 per year for five years (a total of £250,000) are available to support core costs and specific programme costs.

Applications will be accepted from not-for-profit organisations of any size working anywhere in the UK who are working towards:

• Embedding anti-racist practice across their organisation and work.
• Adopting an organisational culture that centres care and wellbeing.
• Shifting power to migrants and diaspora communities so their interests, perspectives and contributions are centred across the organisation’s work.
• Building solidarity and collaboration across communities, while working towards transformational change that benefits us all.
• Unlearning and challenging the harm, inequity, and oppression within their organisational structures and work.
• Learning, reflecting and being responsive to change.

Newly established and unincorporated groups who meet the Fund’s criteria are welcome to apply.

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Abrdn Financial Fairness Trust

Abrdn Financial Fairness Trust makes around 15 to 20 awards each year and intends to award around £3 million annually to organisations undertaking charitable activities in the UK for projects focused on financial wellbeing. This includes voluntary organisations, think tanks, campaigning groups, research bodies and universities. 

Funding is intended for strategic work that has the potential to improve financial wellbeing for those on low to middle incomes and on a national scale, including:

• Policy work.
• Campaigning.
• Research.

New for 2024, the Trust has launched a Climate Change and Household Finances in the UK programme. The programme aims to support projects focused on the household finances of people on low-to-middle incomes in the UK during the transition to Net Zero and adjustment to climate change. The Trust's general funding criteria apply to the programme, and projects must focus on Net Zero and financial wellbeing within one of the main funding programme themes: income, assets and spending.

There is no minimum or maximum size of grant. Grants typically range between £10,000 and £200,000, with most being between £50,000 and £120,000 in total.

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Benefact Trust - Building Improvement Grants

Benefact Trust is offering grants to support capital works to protect and enhance Christian church and charity buildings, ensuring their continued use and viability, and the safeguarding of their heritage.

The Building Improvement Grants Fund will support direct capital costs relating to the following types of work:

• Essential, one-off repairs or other capital works to ensure the continued use or viability of a building.
• Minor capital works or equipment purchases to meet operational or accessibility requirements.
• Conservation or restoration of historic features that contribute to the preservation and appreciation of a building's heritage.
• Other aesthetic enhancements.
• Energy efficiency/renewable energy measures.

The average decision time for smaller grants (up to £25,000) is two months. Larger grants (over £25,000) are considered at grants committee and board meetings and can take between four and six months.

The programme is open to applications from churches, cathedrals, denominational bodies and Christian charities across the UK.

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Foundation Derbyshire

Grants are available to local voluntary and community groups supporting the most vulnerable in Derby and Derbyshire communities. Applications are accepted from community groups, registered charities, charitable incorporated organisations (CIOs) and community interest companies (CICs). Equipment (capital) and general running costs such as rent and transport (revenue) are eligible. Most funds are generally open all year round with no closing dates. You can apply for up to £2,500.

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Derbyshire Voluntary Action Small Grants

Derbyshire Voluntary Action administers this small grant fund on behalf of the NHS to support the running costs of voluntary and community groups. When necessary, priority is given to smaller groups to support sustainability.

This small grant scheme is to help groups with their running costs, e.g., room hire, postage, advertising, insurance, training, volunteer expenses, insurance, or transport costs of enabling people to get to meetings.  They can also give grants to help groups purchase a much-needed piece of equipment.

Applications for funding must benefit the health & wellbeing of residents in Chesterfield, North East Derbyshire and Bolsover.

Groups may apply at any point of the year, subject to funding still being available. Applications may be made once every twelve months. Grants up to £500 will be considered.

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The National Lottery Community Fund | Awards for All

Grants are available for charities, voluntary groups, schools and local authorities in England to carry out projects that will improve their local community. The funding is intended for projects that support communities to thrive by:

• Bringing people together to build strong relationships in and across communities.
• Improving the places and spaces that matter to communities.
• Helping more people to reach their potential, by supporting them at the earliest possible stage.
• Supporting people, communities and organisations that are facing increased demands and challenges as a direct result of the cost-of-living crisis. Grants of between £300 and £20,000 are available for up to two years. 

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Paul Hamlyn Foundation - Arts Fund

The Foundation is providing grants of between £90,000 and £300,000 to support the core costs of not-for-profit cultural organisations working at the intersection of art and social change within the UK so they can continue the work they are already doing and for programmes which are central to their mission.

The support is for not-for-profit cultural organisations who:

• Use their creative practice to help us engage with the complexity of the world around us.
• Centre the lived experience of those affected by injustice in their programmes, leadership and governance.
• Are exploring how values of care, equity and justice can be embedded in their own organisational culture.
• Have a clear sense of their own role in supporting change as part of a wider ecosystem.
• Are generous with their learning and working with other organisations towards mutual aims.
• Use their creative practice to challenge traditional cultural hierarchies of genre and art form.

The Arts Fund supports the long-term development and transformation of these organisations as a route towards social justice and sustainability.

This fund is focused on supporting organisations to become more sustainable and to deepen the impact of the work. This can include support for specific posts, skills development, underpinning of the strategy or business model and for project delivery which is central to their organisation’s mission and vision.

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Greene King’s Proud to Pitch In

Proud To Pitch In is an initiative from Greene King IPA, paying cash grants to grassroots and community sports clubs across the United Kingdom, project beneficiaries must be aged 18 or over. Grants of up to £4,000 are available.

The aim of this fund is to support sports focussed projects that positively impact their club and/or the local community, and would tangibly benefit from funding. The fund is particularly focussed on sports projects that have a long term impact. 

Examples of projects that have previously received funding include:

• Renovations of a club's facilities making them more inclusive and accessible
• Coaching qualifications and referee courses
• New equipment

The fund is open to applications all year and grants will be distributed regularly.

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Community Green Spaces Fund

The UK Government is launching a new fund £7 million fund to support rural communities across England to create, restore and enhance their green spaces. The Community Green Spaces Fund will provide grants of up to £75,000 to help communities create orchards, kitchen gardens, and wildflower areas around village halls and other green spaces. The funding will also support the development of natural play areas for children and improve accessibility with new paths, seating, and disabled parking spaces. The fund is expected to open to applications in early summer. In addition, the Platinum Jubilee Village Halls Fund is being extended to provide an additional £5 million of funding to support projects such as village hall extensions and Wi-Fi installation. 

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Climate Action Fund – Our Shared Future

The National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF) has launched its new £20 million ‘Climate Action Fund – Our Shared Values’ as part of its wider Climate Action programme.

The funding is for formal partnership working across sectors, led by community and voluntary organisations or public sector organisations for projects that reach more people by either: 

Linking climate action to the everyday lives and interests of local communities and inspiring them to take action.

Influencing communities at a regional or national level, for example by linking up groups across locations, or a campaign that inspires change across one country, or the whole UK.

The funding is intended to reach people who are new to climate action by funding other types of organisations and by using other using people's everyday activities and interests as a starting point for climate action.

For example, a project might:

Involve people who have not had a say. This could be because they are new to climate action, or because they come from communities that experience poverty, disadvantage and discrimination.

Introduce a climate perspective to a group who came together around another interest or activity.

Test the best ways to engage different audiences in climate action.

Spread an exciting local approach to climate action by sharing it nationally.

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Austin and Hope Pilkington Trust

The Trust supports registered UK charities that work with communities in the UK.

The Trust operates a three-year rotation system, with different fields of interests being funded each year. In 2024, round two offers grants of £5,000 for projects that are focused on disability, specifically employment and training for people living with disabilities to ensure better access.

Applications will be accepted during the month of April from UK registered charities or organisations that are exempt from registration in the UK. Charities must have a minimum operating income and minimum operating expenditure of £1 million to apply. There is no maximum income or expenditure.

Applications will not be accepted from CICs or non-profit organisations. The funding cannot be used for capital projects, minibuses or other vehicles.

There are normally four application rounds per year with applications accepted for one month only, usually in February, April, July and September.

The theme for rounds three and four is Food Poverty with a focus on providing nutritious meals, food education, cooking skills, and eliminating food waste.

Charities can only apply for one round per calendar year. 

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Community Ownership Fund

The Government has announced that ahead of the launch of the fourth and final round of the £150 million Community Ownership Fund (COF), it has published a new Expression of Interest (EOI) form.

According to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities: 

• The new EOI has been simplified to give applicants a result within minutes, meaning that they will be able to see whether their project could be suitable for COF much quicker than before.
• To enable the move to the new system, EOIs submitted prior to February 2024 will no longer be valid.
• Organisations that wish to submit a full application to COF in a future application window, will need to complete a new EOI.
• Only applicants who submitted an EOI in the new system will be informed when a bidding window is about to open and will receive the link needed to apply to COF.

The Community Ownership Fund helps community groups buy or renovate assets that would otherwise be lost to the community. 

Voluntary and community organisations from across the UK can apply as long as they are an incorporated organisation set up to deliver charitable purpose, social purpose or public benefit and have a viable plan for taking ownership of a community asset at risk and running it sustainably for community benefit. 

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Village Halls Small Grants Fund

Defra funded grant scheme reopens for those managing rural community buildings. This is managed by ACRE who have also announced a new Chief Executive

This round has a lower award threshold of £2,000 to support smaller projects and make it accessible to more groups.

The grant fund has re-opened to new applicants who wish to undertake smaller projects such as disability access, toilet upgrades and new kitchens. Grant awards of between £2,000 to £5,000, and up to 20 per cent of eligible project costs, are on offer. Project expenditure must take place before 31 March 2025.

Deadline: The fund is expected to stay open until December 2024, however it may be withdrawn before this.

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