Funding Opportunities

Opens 23^rd May

The Urban Tree Challenge Fund (UTCF) has been developed in response to HM Treasury releasing £10 million in the 2018 Autumn Budget announcement for planting at least 130,000 trees across towns and cities in England. 

The UTCF provides funding to support the planting and establishment of large and small trees in urban and peri-urban areas in England. The support is competitive and targeted at projects that can provide the greatest environmental, social and economic benefits in our towns and cities.

Public bodies, community groups, charities and non-government organisations, individuals and private companies who provide matched funding will be eligible to apply.

More information and application forms will be available here from 23 May 2019.

What services The Postlethwaite Music Foundation provides funding for, in relation to music:

• The advancement of health or saving of lives
• Arts/culture/heritage/science
• Education/training

There is no website – for more information e-mail postlethwaitemusicfoundation@gmail.com, ring 01522 544 927 or write to 9 Lilford Close, Lincoln, LN2 4TG

The Foundation funds seven particular beneficiary groups:

• Asylum seekers and refugees
• Gypsies and Travellers
• Migrant communities
• Offenders and ex-offenders
• Older people
• People experiencing mental health problems
• People experiencing violence or abuse 

The maximum grant is £15,000, and the average grant size is around £5,000-£6,000.

While recognising (and being willing to support) on-going, tried and tested projects, they are also particularly interested in unusual, imaginative or pioneering projects which have perhaps not yet caught the public imagination.

In January 2019, they also launched a new programme of work focusing on Social Cohesion.  Please click here for more details.

For more information go to the Foundation’s website

Waste Recycling Environmental Ltd (WREN) has changed its name to FCC Communities Foundation Ltd., along with its website and email address.

The funder says that it ‘believes its new name better reflects’ the primary source of its funding for community projects, FCC Environment, the donor landfill operator.

The FCC Community Action Fund is currently accepting applications from not-for-profit organisations with projects that are located within 10 miles of an eligible FCC landfill site in England.

Grants of between £2,000 and £100,000 are available for projects with a maximum total cost of £500,000, intended for the provision, maintenance or improvement of public amenities

For more information go to the new website

Deadline 2^nd September

The UK Theatres Small Grants Scheme is a capital fund that awards up to £5,000 to theatres across the UK run by charities and not-for-profit groups that can clearly demonstrate the value capital improvements to their theatres would make to their work in local communities.

Priorities include projects that address urgent building repairs, improve operational viability, introduce environmental improvements, and enhance physical accessibility. Please note that applications for technical equipment and refurbishment of soft furnishings are a low priority for the scheme.

For more information go to the Trust’s website

Deadline 13^th September

Theatres Trust’s Theatre Improvement Scheme, in association with the Wolfson Foundation, offers capital funding for theatres.

This is a three-year scheme, with funding each year being given to projects on a specific theme. The theme for the 2019 fund is Improving Environmental Sustainability.

Theatre operators can apply for grants of up to £20,000 towards their building or equipment as part of the scheme.

For more information go to the Trust’s website

Large scale grants

Food Waste Prevention – Stage 1 proposals; Deadline 1 July

This scheme is to provide capital infrastructure that will help address a current capacity gap in the sector for redistributing food that is currently being wasted, diverting this to people in need. The grants will support redistributing a significant volume of food to end beneficiaries through not-for-profit organisations / non-commercial activity.

Small scale grants

Wave 1: Food Waste Prevention;  Deadline 15 July

Programme of grants to provide new small-scale capital infrastructure and revenue support to organisations redistributing surplus food from the likes of retailers and food manufacturers.  This programme will continue the success of the previous small-scale redistribution programme delivered by WRAP in addressing barriers to food redistribution.

For more information go to the website

Deadline 31^st July

Access sport is delighted to announce the creation of the Angus Irvine Playing Fields Fund, formed by the merger into Access Sport of the charity formerly known as the Playing Fields Legacy Fund.

The Angus Irvine Playing Fields Fund exists to increase opportunities for young people in disadvantaged areas of the UK to play outdoor sport.

The fund is available to local community groups, sports clubs and charities.

Grants will typically be in the range from £2.5k – £5k although a larger grant may be possible in some circumstances.

Applications can be made for grants towards some or all of the following types of projects with the intention of growing capacity to reach more young people:

1. The development and improvement of playing fields and other facilities
2. The development and training of volunteers including the provision of qualifications
3. The purchase of specialist disability equipment
4. The development of long-term sustainability, for example marketing and finance expertise

Where it can be demonstrated that a grant will help unlock additional funding from other funders, this is encouraged

For more information about the new fund, and to apply go to Access to Sport