We appreciate the huge amount of work that goes into making a funding application. If your work genuinely doesn't fit with our priorities then your efforts may be better focused on applying to other funders.
Where to start
- nfp Synergy has a comprehensive beginner's guide to fundraising for small organisations.
- Community Foundations help people and organisations to invest in local communities where it is most needed and where it will make most impact. UK Community Foundations is the national membership and support organisation for individual community foundations. Collectively, its members are the largest community-focused grant-making network in the UK, making over £65 million grants a year. You can search their network to find one local to your organisation.
Cost of Living Crisis Funding
Charity Excellence have a page, which they are continuing to update, with grant funding available for charities and individuals.
Funding directories
Below we also list funding directories that may be able to help you find a funder that is a good fit for your work.
- Grant funding
- GrantNav: a free-to-use open data platform that enables you to access and explore funder information from UK grantmaking organisations. You can search by multiple criteria including by funder, recipient, location and keywords for thousands of grants.
- Charity Excellence Framework: registering to access the database takes 2 minutes and also allows use of the ‘health check’ assessment and access to the huge resource base, including a funding finder.
- Funds Online: a funding database featuring over 8,000 funders from the Directory of Social Change. Flexible subscriptions available.
- Directory of Social Change: purchase publications on UK grant-making such as the Directory of Grant-Making Trusts. They also provide training on fundraising.
- My Funding Central: a database of grant funding and social investment. It's available to organisations with an annual income below £1m. Subscription is free for organisations with an annual income of under £30k.
NCVO also has a section with practical tips and guides on fundraising, and 360Giving has written a blog with links to resources for fundraisers to search for funders for free.
- Social investment
- Good Finance: a website to help charities and social enterprises navigate the world of social investment, which includes a social investor directory and tool to find out if social investment is right for your organisation.
