Grant Directories

The BBC Children in Need Core Grants Programme distributes grants to not-for-profit organisations working with children and young people aged 18 or under. Funding is available to support essential organisational and administrative spending. These are the key expenses required to keep your organisation running and can include: Management and administration; HR and payroll; General office expenses; Accountancy and audit; Communications and outreach; Monitoring, evaluation, and learning; Governance, regulatory, and compliance costs.

The BBC Children in Need Project grants programme distributes grants to support the aims and delivery of a specific piece of work. This work will usually be time-limited, and based on a defined set of activities. Grants are available for up to three years, grants for over £15,000 will only be considered from organisations who have registered with the appropriate regulatory body. These include the Charity Commission for England and Wales, Charity Commission for Northern Ireland and the Scottish Charity Register.

The Asda Foundation aims to transform communities and improve lives by providing independent grants and support to locally relevant community projects throughout the UK. Through the Under 18 Better Starts Grant, the Foundation provides funding of between £400 and £2000 to improve the lives of disadvantaged children and young people across the UK. The funding is available to not-for-profit organisations for projects which give children the best start in life, encourage them to be active, and which tackle poverty, inclusion and wellbeing. Projects could include breakfast clubs, food and clothing banks, arts and crafts groups, brownies, scouts, training for counsellors, U18 sporting/physical activity-based groups, and Easter and Jubilee Celebrations for U18’s. Applications should be made through each local Asda store’s Community Champion. 

The Trusthouse Charitable Foundation is a grant making foundation that give grants to small and medium sized local organisations in the UK with a demonstrable track record of success working to address local issues in communities of extreme urban deprivation and deprived rural districts. Through the small grants programme the foundation provides funding of between £2,000 and £10,000 to charitable organisations with an income of less than £250,000 for projects that focus on Community Support. Examples of the kind of projects that can be funded include: CommunityServices; CommunityCentres; Alternative Education; Training, mentoring, employment and volunteering opportunities; Youth; Counselling; Family Support Services; Substance Misuse.

The Morgan Foundation is a grant making trust that supports charities across North Wales, Merseyside, West Cheshire and North Shropshire. The foundation specialises in supporting organisations helping children and families as well as the elderly, disabled and socially isolated.  Through the Major Grants programme the Foundation makes grants of over £100,000 including awards for capital projects to organisations helping children and families as well as the elderly, disabled and socially isolated.

The Esmee Fairbairn Foundation aims to improve the quality of life for people and communities throughout the UK. The Foundation does this by funding the charitable work of organisations that are building an inclusive, creative and sustainable society.  Through the Children and Young people programme the Foundation will fund organisations that seek to challenge the inequalities faced by young people (age 0–25). The Foundation want to see the views of children and young people at the heart of organisations, and young people empowered to take action.

UK-German Connection's special flexible funding scheme aims to bring young people of the UK and Germany together to exchange ideas, promote joint learning and open discussions on special topics and current issues. Grants of £500 to £10,000 are available for projects that ensure that young people actively engage in an educational learning and thinking process, including discussion, debate and reflection. Activities funded must also show strong wider impact, and that the young people take an active role in this.

Through the Sustainable Future Programme, the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust (JRCT) aims to support work that develops and promotes sustainable, low-carbon alternatives to the current consumerist and growth-based paradigm. Funded projects will focus on: Better economics that reflect the true costs and risks of resource depletion, climate change and other environmental problems: Campaigns, initiatives and work that promote alternatives to consumerism: Campaigns and movements that give a voice to young activists and marginalised groups on issues of economic and environmental justice.

Community Foundation in Wales is one of 48 community foundations across the UK. The Foundation's aim is to promote and manage philanthropy and its role is to strengthen communities in Wales by awarding grants on behalf of a range of donors to projects that make a sustainable impact on local needs especially for the most vulnerable people and communities. Grant awards recognise the inspirational role of community groups, projects and charities in identifying and addressing local needs. Educational grants and scholarships are also awarded. Funding is available for a wide range of projects under five core themes: Educating and young people, communities, health, culture and environment. Each programme has its own unique criteria.

The BBC Children in Need Main Grants programme distributes grants of over £10,000 to not for profit organisations such as Registered charities; Voluntary organisations; Schools ; Churches; and Community groups, etc  that work with disadvantaged children below the age of 18 living in the UK. In particular, grants are available for projects that help children and young people of 18 years and under experiencing illness, distress, abuse or neglect; any kind of disability; behavioural or psychological difficulties; and / or living in poverty or situations of deprivation. Applications should demonstrate how your project will change the lives of children for the better.

The Ford Britain Trust provides grants for the advancement of education and other charitable purposes. Grant applications supporting the following activities will be considered; work that has clear benefits to the local community/environment; work with young people/children; education/schools (mainstream); special education needs; people with disabilities. Grants made by the Trust are usually one-off donations for a specific capital project or part of a project, typically items of furniture, equipment or computers. The fund is open to organisations based in Essex (including East London); St Albans; Bridgend (South Wales); Southampton; and Daventry - areas close to Ford UK locations. Exceptions may be made for initiatives in which Ford Motor Company Limited employees and retirees are involved.

The Tree Council is the UK's lead charity for trees, promoting their importance in a changing environment. The trees for schools grant is open to all schools within the United Kingdom with pupils aged 16 or under. The Tree Council will fund up to 4 fruit trees (but no more than that) on semi-vigorous, vigorous and very vigorous rootstocks. If you wish to plant more than 4 fruit trees, please apply to our Orchard Windfalls Fund. Projects must fall between £100 and £700 and children under the age of sixteen must be actively involved in the planting process.

The Roman Society is the leading organisation in the United Kingdom for those interested in the study of Rome and the Roman Empire. The Society's Schools Committee makes grants to schools to help promote the teaching of Latin and Roman studies. Most of the grants are awarded for the purchase of textbooks and other books on Roman topics, but the Committee also makes awards to groups and schools organising lectures or study days on Roman themes, and has recently made money available for archaeology fieldwork bursaries. Applications from schools planning to start courses in Latin are particularly welcome.  Grants usually range from £50 to £600.

Schools, charities and community organisations can apply for grants for projects that improve the quality and prospect of life for children and young people who are disadvantaged physically, mentally or socially including those Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET). The grants available include capital projects such as medical treatment and recovery centres, sports and activity areas, sensory rooms and gardens, playgrounds and hydrotherapy pools as well as revenue grants to support outreach programmes for children in their communities.

The Volunteering in Wales Fund is a scheme funded by the Welsh Government to promote Volunteering in Wales. The Fund is administered by Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA). The aim of the Volunteering in Wales Fund (VWF) discretionary grant scheme is to support projects whose aims are mainly achieved by the use of formal volunteers; support not for profit organisations whose primary purpose is the recruiting, training and placing of volunteers; encourage good practice in volunteering; and encourage projects in areas where volunteering is under-developed because of location of the project, or the type of volunteering activity.

BBC Children in Need Small Grants programme distributes grants of up to £10,000 to not for profit organisations such as Registered charities; Voluntary organisations; Special Schools ; Churches; and Community groups, etc  that work with disadvantaged children below the age of 18 living in the UK. . In particular, grants are available for projects that help children and young people of 18 years and under experiencing illness, distress, abuse or neglect; any kind of disability; behavioural or psychological difficulties; and / or living in poverty or situations of deprivation. Applications should demonstrate how your project will change the lives of children for the better.