Other sources of funding help

Where to start?

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. Below are links to some alternative funding sources.

  • nfp Synergy - 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.

  • Funding directories
  • Other funders
  • Funders with small grants programmes

Funding directories:

There are a number of directories and websites containing information that may help you find appropriate funders for your work.

Beehive - a tech for good project that uses information about your organisation or project to identify suitable funds for you. Easily check if you meet a given funder's eligibility criteria to prevent you wasting time and effort applying to the wrong funder.

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.

NCVO Funding Central – a searchable database of grants, contracts and loan finance opportunities from local, national and international funding sources.

Other funders:

This is by no means an exhaustive list - just a few funders we know of that are currently open to applications. Please read their guidelines in full before deciding whether to apply.

Funder

Where they fund

What they fund

Barrow Cadbury Trust

UK/Birmingham

Looks for long-term solutions and structural change by addressing the root causes of inequality in the areas of:

  • Criminal justice
  • Economic justice
  • Migration
  • Social investment

Children in Need

UK

Children and young people

City Bridge Trust

London

 Current funding programmes:

Connecting the Capital
Positive Transitions
Advice and Support

Garfield Weston Foundation

 

UK
  • Welfare
  • Youth
  • Community
  • Arts
  • Faith
  • Environment
  • Education
  • Health and museums & heritage

Groundwork

UK

Environment:

  • Creating better, greener places
  • Improving people's prospects
  • Promoting greener living and working

Henry Smith

UK

Priority is given to work with groups experiencing social and/or economic disadvantage and to work that tackles problems in areas of high deprivation (those that fall within the bottom third of the National Indices of Deprivation)

Heritage Lottery Fund

 

 

UK
  • Land and natural heritage
  • Museums, libraries and archives
  • Buildings and monuments
  • Cultures and memories
  • Industrial, maritime and transport
  • Community heritage

John Ellerman Foundation

UK
  • Arts
  • Environment
  • Welfare

Applicants must be doing work that has a national footprint.

Local Trust

England

Place based-funding for communities provided by Big Lottery. Find out if you are in a Big Local funding area here.

Lloyds Bank Foundation

England and Wales

Work addressing multiple disadvantage

The National Lottery Community Fund

UK

 Runs a wide variety of grant programmes aimed at improving communities. 

Paul Hamlyn Foundation

UK
  • Nurturing ideas and people
  • Arts
  • Investing in young people

The Dulverton Trust

England, Wales, Scotland
  • Youth opportunities
  • General welfare
  • Conservation
  • Preservation
  • Peace and humanitarian support

The Robertson Trust

Scotland
  • Social change
  • Children and young people
  • Community projects

The Tudor Trust

UK

Smaller groups, embedded in their communities, which work directly with people who are on the edges of mainstream society in ways which encourage inclusion, integration and independence.

The Wolfson Foundation

UK
  • Capital projects (buildings/refurbishment, equipment)
  • Science and medicine
  • Arts and humanities
  • Education
  • Health and disability

Funders with small grants programmes:

As a large funder with a relatively small staff team, we choose to concentrate our funding in larger long-term grants. The organisations listed below provide small grants (£60,000 or less). Please read their guidelines in full before deciding whether to apply.

Funder

Where they fund

Small grants details

 What they fund

Arts Councils

 England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland

Provides grants from £10,000 - £30,000 individuals or arts organisations involved in arts-related activities.

 Arts and culture
Big Lottery Fund  UK Awards for All offers funding from £300 - £10,000 to support what matters to people and communities.  
Children in Need  UK Small Grants programme is open to charities and not-for-profit organisations applying for any amount up to and including £10,000 per year for up to 3 years  
City Bridge Trust London Small Grants are available of between £1,000 - £10,000 over 12 months to groups working in London with an income of less than £75,000.  
Community Foundations  UK The average grant size is £3,200. If your organisation is looking for funding please approach your local Community Foundation.  Local projects on a range of issues depending on the priority needs of the community.  
Foyle Foundation  UK Small Grants Scheme offers one year grants of £1,000 - £10,000 to charities with an annual turnover of less than £150,000 Core costs, equipment, capital or project costs.  
Groundwork UK Manage a number of small environment grant schemes between £1,000 - £20,000 designed to create greener communities. Environment:
  • Creating better, greener places
  • Improving people's prospects
  • Promoting greener living and working
Henry Smith  UK   Priority is given to work with groups experiencing social and/or economic disadvantage and to work that tackles problems in areas of high deprivation (those that fall within the bottom third of the National Indices of Deprivation)
Heritage Lottery Fund  UK Provides grants ranging from £3,000 - £10,000 for small-scale heritage projects.
  • Land and natural heritage
  • Museums, libraries and archives
  • Buildings and monuments
  • Cultures and memories
  • Industrial, maritime and transport
  • Community heritage
Lloyds Bank Foundation England and Wales  Enable grants provide funding of up to £15,000 across one or two years to support charities to develop or trial new approaches to service delivery. Work addressing multiple disadvantage
Paul Hamlyn Foundation UK

Ideas and Pioneers Fund supports people with unusual or radical ideas to improve the life chances and opportunities of people in the UK. Grants of up to £10,000 are available.

Explore and test grants of up to £60,000 are available to support organisations to test, pilot and evaluate new approaches.
  • Nurturing ideas and people
  • Arts
The Dulverton Trust England, Wales, Scotland Provides grants of £10,000 - £30,000 to support medium sized charities with an income above £200,000.
  • Youth opportunities
  • General welfare
  • Conservation
  • Preservation
  • Peace and humanitarian support
The Rank Foundation  UK Provides a small funding stream for registered charities and recognised churches raising money for projects where the total cost is less than £1m. The average award is £1,000
  • Capital costs
  • Short breaks
The Robertson Trust Scotland Runs a small award programme for work which takes place in Scotland. Awards range from £500 - £10,000 per year and up to £20,000 for capital costs.
  • Social change
  • Children and young people
  • Community projects
The Yapp Charitable Trust England and Wales  Provides grants of up to £3,000 per year for running costs to registered charities with a total annual expenditure of less than £40,000 Priority groups:
  • Elderly people
  • Children and young people aged 5 – 25
  • People with physical impairments, learning difficulties or mental health challenges
  • Social
  • Education and learning