Grant Directories

The Gloucestershire Community Foundation exists to benefit disadvantaged communities by making grants to support relevant charitable or voluntary organisations, which make a difference to their local communities. Through the SWEF Enterprise Fund the foundation provides funding of up to £2,000 to young people in Gloucestershire who need support with business investment that they would otherwise not be able to afford, and particularly to those who are not in education, employment or training.

The Cornwall Community Foundation was established in 2003. It awards funding to local charities, community and voluntary groups and social enterprise for projects which strengthen and make a real difference to communities in Cornwall. Through the South West Enterprise Fund the foundation provides funding to young Cornish people aged between 18 - 30 years old who do not have the initial starter funds to get their business ideas off the ground. Grants range from £200 to £2,000, donations will vary depending on individual requirements

The Society of Merchant Venturers work with and support people and communities from the wider Bristol area through education, care for older people, charitable giving and social enterprise. Registered charities and organisations with a charitable purpose within the greater Bristol area can apply for grants of between £500 and £5,000 through the Society of Merchant Venturers Charity. The Charity will consider applications from organisations addressing the following needs: Social Needs; Youth; Education; Social Enterprise; Health Care; Culture and the Arts; Environment; Bristol – projects, preferably those associated with the Society’s spheres of interest and achievement which will benefit Bristol and its economic development. 

The Youth Futures Foundation aims to transform the lives of young people by unlocking potential and addressing the root causes of youth unemployment.  With a £90 million endowment from the Reclaim fund, the Foundation will support cutting edge solutions and like-minded people to harness the potential of all young people missing out on meaningful employment.  Through the Impact grants programme the Foundation is looking to find, fund, support and evaluate promising practice. Funding will go to organisations working with young people aged 14-24 to help overcome barriers to finding meaningful work. The Foundations is looking for approaches that can be tested, evaluated and, where proven to be effective, expanded to more young people.

The Youth Futures Foundation aims to transform the lives of young people by unlocking potential and addressing the root causes of youth unemployment.  With a £90 million endowment from the Reclaim fund, the Foundation will support cutting edge solutions and like-minded people to harness the potential of all young people missing out on meaningful employment.  Through the Development grants programme the Foundation is looking to find, fund, support and evaluate promising practice. Funding will go to organisations working with young people aged 14-24 to help overcome barriers to finding meaningful work. The Foundations is looking for approaches that can be tested, evaluated and, where proven to be effective, expanded to more young people.

The Youth Futures Foundation aims to transform the lives of young people by unlocking potential and addressing the root causes of youth unemployment.  With a £90 million endowment from the Reclaim fund, the Foundation will support cutting edge solutions and like-minded people to harness the potential of all young people missing out on meaningful employment.  Through the Grants to Support Infrastructure Organisations the Foundation is seeking to fund and evaluate infrastructure organisations that support the needs of frontline organisations across England delivering effective solutions to youth unemployment.

The Somerset Community Foundation was established in 2002. The Foundation's aim is to provide funding that will address the needs of Somerset's most vulnerable people and communities by tackling disadvantage, transforming people's lives and strengthening local communities. Through the Eagle House Small Grants programme the foundation offers grants of up to £500 to improve the wellbeing and independence of young people by supporting their education, talent, professional development, employment, or enterprise.

Groundwork is a federation of charities working nationally and locally to transform lives in the UK’s most disadvantaged communities. Groundwork is administering the  ESFA Community Training Grants: Dorset programme on behalf of the Education and Skills Funding Agency and the European Social Fund. The focus of these grants will be to fund projects which support participants who are over 16 years of age, eligible to work in the UK and either unemployed or economically inactive. Successful applicants are expected to be able to help move individuals into work, or closer to employment, by providing vocational training, advice, guidance and information.

The National Lottery Community Fund is matching funds from the European Social Fund (ESF) 2014-2020 to provide joint investment in local projects tackling the root causes of poverty, promoting social inclusion and driving local jobs and growth. The National Lottery Community Fund expect the funding to be delivered in 38 Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) areas according to local priorities, which have been set by the LEPs, and will support projects ranging from improving employability for the most disadvantaged, helping those with multiple and complex needs, to improving financial literacy.

Small Enterprises recruiting 16 – 24 year olds can now apply for apprenticeship grants of up to £1,500 the AGE 16 to 24 programme. Priority will be given to small employers with less than 50 employees and the Government expects to support at least 40,000 of these employers to recruit an apprentice for the first time. The £1,500 is in addition to the training costs of the Apprenticeship framework which are met in full for young people aged 16 to 18 and 50% for those aged 19 to 24. It is expected that most employers will want to access AGE 16 to 24 to support the recruitment of one apprentice. However subject to budget availability and the employer’s commitment to support the apprentice to the end of their programme, up to 5 grants can be made to any one employer.