Our Support

Using all the tools in our toolbox

Participatory City

We use all our tools to unlock change

We want to play an active role ourselves in responding to the critical issues facing our society. As a funder we have a range of tools – including grants and investments - we can use to effect change.

We will now use all our tools to broker alliances, use our influence and remove barriers to achieve our impact goals.

  • Sea Ranger Service

    Grants

    We support organisations' charitable work with unrestricted, core and project grants. Learn more about our approach to funding and what you can expect from us.

    Read more
  • HUBBUB_LeedsByExample_Conversaion_May2019 65 (1).jpg

    Social Investment

    We use social investment as a tool, alongside our grants and our own actions, to achieve our impact goals. Learn more about our social investment opportunities.

    Read more
  • People holding hands - support

    Funding Plus

    Funding Plus is funding for capacity building provided to organisations we fund to help them achieve greater impact. The maximum Funding Plus award is £9,000.

    Read more
  • Praxis Community Projects, Brighter Futures

    Funding partnerships

    We want to be at the forefront of new approaches to funding - working in partnership with other funders and organisations to increase our reach and make more of a difference.

    Read more
  • Articulate Cultural Trust (ACT)-Five young care experienced people standing on Abriachan Bridge.jpg

    Infrastructure support

    We want to enable a sector fit for the future by supporting work that contributes to our impact goals and work across our aims by enabling a stronger, inclusive and innovative sector.

    Read more
  • A group of people in colorful outfits wave and pose in front of a building with "UNION STREET PARTY" written on the window. Photo taken by Hanna Collins Photography for the Union Street Party organised by Nudge Community Builders

    Impact Investing

    Insights and learning from our impact investing, which we hope is helpful to others looking to be more impact-driven through their investment strategy.

    Read more
  • Campaign Bootcamp - 2018-Johnny Chatterton.jpg

    Convening and connecting

    We connect people and organisations to foster dialogue, share learning, create joint opportunities and develop new, collective approaches. We also work in partnership ourselves.

    Read more
  • A workshop from Black South West Network's social enterprise programme

    Impact and learning

    Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is a charity with our own mission and strategy, but we do nothing alone – we fund or work with others to achieve our goals. So how can we evaluate whether our work is making a difference?

    Read more
  • Multi-Story Music

    Communications about our funding

    Guidance for organisations we work with on communications about our funding, including logo files, press release quotes, and how to get in touch with our Communications team.

    Read more
  • Settled providing outreach at a jobs fair in Cardiff

    Feedback

    We gather regular, anonymous feedback on the way we work at key points, and survey all applicants and organisations we fund every other year.

    Read more
  • Back to Ours-Outdoor performance-a boy is doing a headstand on a checkered makeshift board as a crowd watches and claps along

    Safeguarding

    Learn about our approach to safeguarding at each stage of our funding process.

    Read more
  • Zoielogic Dance Theatre

    Our funding data

    We publish all our grants and social investments on 360Giving, an initiative that aims to help UK funders share their data in an open and standard format online.

    Read more
Bilton Grange Mural Project_Aug 2019_Jerome Whittingham (59).jpg

Useful sector resources

Find useful sector resources on a range of topics including legal, fundraising, campaigning, digital and safeguarding.

Find out more
Latest

You might be interested in

  • Nudge Community Builders-Union Street Party 2023 (Hanna Collins)
    06 October 2026

    Community-driven enterprise and regeneration review: Invitation to tender

    We are looking to work with an external consultant or organisation to review our work and funding towards our Community-driven enterprise and regeneration priority.

    Read more
  • View from a hillside over a patchwork countryside of green fields and hedgerows, with a winding road through trees and distant hills beneath cloudy skies-Stroud

    Is resilience the new greenwash?

    Esmée’s Director of Our Natural World, Liam McAleese, reflects on growing concerns about climate-related risks in food and farming and what genuine resilience means. He also shares how we’re thinking about this in our work on nature-friendly farming, as well our role as an investor.

    Read more
  • The Warren Youth Project crew in Hull after their Good Night Out Campaign training session

    Pre-application Q&A webinar: 28 September 2026

    Watch a pre-application Q&A webinar we held on 28 September for organisations interested in applying to Esmée for support who have questions about our application process or guidance.

    Read more
  • IMG_4446 (1)

    Involving young people at Esmée: The journey so far

    Since 2020, we have worked closely with the Involving Young People Collective to involve young people more directly in our work, and this report reflects on our five-year journey, the impact of the partnership and what we have learned along the way.

    Read more