Grant Directories

The Goalposts Grant provides financial support for purchasing new or replacement goalposts for grassroots football. Grants of up to £25,000 are available to eligible non-profit organizations, including football clubs, local authorities, and educational establishments that serve the community. The grant covers specific types of goalposts and aims to enhance football facilities at the community level. The grant aims to support football clubs and related entities in acquiring goalposts. 

The Peter Harrison Foundation provides the Active Lives Grant Programme to support projects that help disadvantaged or disabled people in the UK lead active lifestyles. The programme focuses on using grassroots sport and physical activity as a catalyst to develop personal and life skills, assisting individuals in discovering and fulfilling their potential.

The British Cycling Places to Ride funding programme supports the development of new or the improvement of existing cycling facilities in communities across England.  Through the programme, up to £15,000 in match funding is available for Crowdfunder projects that provide community-based, accessible cycling facilities and equipment to encourage people to cycle more regularly, regardless of gender, age, ability or ethnicity. British Cycling want to invest in projects that perhaps would not traditionally see British Cycling as a source of funding or indeed consider sport to be their main area of work. Campaigns typically run for 28 days but take a few weeks to create.

The Mortgage Advice Bureau Foundation funds sustainable community projects throughout England, Scotland and Wales by making grants to support charities and community interest companies. The Foundation, has teamed up with Crowdfunder to make £100,000 in funding available. Organisations can apply for up to 50% of their crowdfunding target, up to a maximum of £5,000, to support projects that match one or more of the following themes: the environment and conservation; health and wellbeing; and the prevention or relief of poverty. Projects could include rewilding projects, community gardens, social inclusion and mental health projects, sports projects, community food banks, money management and budgeting skills, and educational projects for communities to reduce their carbon footprint. No deadline given.

Love Rowing, British Rowing’s Charitable Foundation, provides grants to support rowing clubs, community organisations and charities that are working to make the sport of rowing more inclusive and to reach new and diverse communities across the UK. Grants of up to £3,000 are available to support organisations to get more people involved in rowing, create better awareness around the benefits of the sport, and make the sport more accessible. Preference is given to activities focused on children and the young, people with disabilities, ethnic minority groups, LGBTQ+ and socio-economically disadvantaged communities underrepresented in the sport of rowing. Rowing clubs must be affiliated with British Rowing.

The One Stop Community Partnership Programme provides grants of up to £1,000 to local community groups that are situated within 2 miles of a One Stop Store. Funding is available for community groups or organisations working in the following areas: Tackling food poverty; Supporting the vulnerable; Supporting the elderly; Supporting low-income families; Supporting a healthier lifestyle, such as Youth sports teams. Once funding has been agreed, alongside a grant of up to £1,000, a long-term tailored programme of support is created for successful applicants by the One Stop Community team and One Stop Store team. Grant recipients then work in partnership with the One Stop Store team at their local shop to deliver this programme.

The People's Postcode Trust is a grant-giving body funded by players of the Peoples Postcode Lottery. The small grants scheme distributes funds to small organisations, community groups and registered charities in the West of England, through grants ranging from £500 - £20,000. The Trust funds projects that: Improve mental wellbeing; Enable community participation in the arts; Support marginalised groups and promote equality; Improve biodiversity & green spaces; Enable participation in physical activity; Respond to the climate emergency & promote sustainability; Increase community access to outdoor space.

The Hargreaves Foundation is a grant-making charitable foundation set up in 2020 by Peter Hargreaves and his family.  Applications are open for charities and educational institutions seeking funding to support those under the age of 18, and living with a mental health problem, physical disability or growing up in poverty through the mediums of sport and education.

The Heart of England Community Foundation is a local independent grant making organisation which aims to improve the quality of life of disadvantaged people living in the West Midlands, by awarding grants for specific activities to community-based voluntary groups on behalf of a wide range of donors. Through the Birmingham Sports Fund, the Foundation provides grants of up to £1,000 for projects that encourage more people in Birmingham to be active and engage in sport. In particular, the fund aims to support projects that encourage sports participation from disadvantaged communities, Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities, women and girls, and disabled people.

The Staffordshire 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 Stafford Borough Sports Grants programme the foundation provides grants of up to £1,000 to encourage and support organisations that offer sporting activities to residents of the Stafford borough.

The Places to Ride Legacy programme will fund the development of multi-use facilities to engage with a broad spectrum of cyclists and to encourage people who have never cycled before to get on their bikes. This will also include a small grants fund for the improvement of existing cycling facilities and supporting opportunities to ride in communities across England.  Applications can be submitted at any time and decisions will be made every 12 weeks.  

Localgiving has teamed up with the Postcode Community Trust to provide the Magic Little Grants programme. The fund provides small charities and community groups with grants of £500 for projects that meet either of the following themes: Overcoming barriers to participation in physical activities in creative ways; Increasing social cohesion through developing access to sports and other recreational activities. 

The Dream Fund has been developed to give charities the chance to deliver the project they have always dreamed of, but never had the opportunity to bring to life. The Dream Fund allows charities to apply for up to £1 million to deliver their ‘dream’ project over 24 months. Applications must come from a collaboration of at least two organisations. The fund supports charities to develop innovative solutions to society’s most challenging problems. Applications that can score highly in their originality, ambition and collaborative nature stand the highest chances of being successful.

Ibstock Enovert Trust (formerly Ibstock Cory Environmental Trust) is an Environmental body which supports community and environmental projects. The Trust awards grants under the terms of the Landfill Communities Fund (LCF), providing funding to a broad range of projects that have a positive impact on local communities. The Trust is committed to supporting community and environmental projects across the UK. These include improving community halls, the creation of new sports facilities, and restoring green spaces. Your application will be more effective if you can outline who will be using your facility, how many members of the community will frequent it, and if you can demonstrate a real need for it in the local area.

Enovert Community Trust (formerly Cory Environmental Trust in Britain) is an Environmental body which supports community and environmental projects. The Trust awards grants under the terms of the Landfill Communities Fund (LCF), providing funding to a broad range of projects that have a positive impact on local communities. The Trust is committed to supporting community and environmental projects across the UK. These include improving community halls, the creation of new play areas and skate parks, and restoring green spaces. Fundraising by applicants is looked upon favourably by the Trustees. Applicants will need to secure a 10% third party contribution which will be payable to Enovert Limited prior to the project commencing.

Worcestershire Community Foundation (WCF) is one of 48 community foundations across the UK. The Foundation's aim is to provide funding that will directly address the needs of Worcestershire's most vulnerable people and communities. Support generally falls under the broad heading of social welfare. HCF supports projects designed by local people, to address issues that directly affect them. Applications must demonstrate a strong case for support, have clear aims and objectives, and, wherever possible, the applicant organisation or project will be user led and make a real difference to people within the community. WCF is able to fund a wide range of project costs including capital or revenue and some core costs may be considered.

Gloucestershire Community Foundation (GCF) is one of 48 community foundations across the UK. GCF supports local voluntary and community activity through a programme of constructive grant making targeting small, local, voluntary and community organisations where a relatively small amount of money can make a significant difference i.e. grassroots groups including those that do not have charitable status, but do make a local impact. Support generally falls under the broad heading of social welfare. GCF is able to fund a wide range of project costs including capital purchases e.g. equipment, maintenance or improvement of community buildings, or revenue costs such as venue hire, promotional costs, start-up expenses, activities or training.

The Veolia Environmental Trust is a Distributive Environmental Body that awards grants as part of the Landfill Communities Fund. Constituted, not-for-profit groups within the vicinity of a qualifying Veolia site, can apply for grants for projects that support the natural, social and built environment. The type of activities that can be supported include Community buildings and rooms: such as community centres, village halls, community spaces within religious buildings, Scout/Guide buildings; Outdoor Spaces: e.g. public parks, nature reserves, community gardens, footpaths, or cycle-paths; Play and recreation: e.g. play areas, skate-parks, sports facilities.The maximum grant is £75,000 for projects with a total cost of under £250,000.

The Football Foundation is the UK’s largest sports’ charity. Youth football in England is enormously popular, there are over 55,000 teams and every weekend most players, coaches and referees have an enjoyable experience of the game. There are however occasions where some spectators fail to recognise that youth football is a time to learn the game and are aggressive, sarcastic and disrespectful. Some young players will imitate this behaviour whilst others will fail to fulfil their potential. The Football Foundation Respect scheme offers your club, school or league the opportunity to purchase Respect equipment (captains’ armbands, marshals’ bibs and Respect Signage) which, if used effectively, will help to promote the beautiful game. The scheme offers 75% off the normal cost price of these items. 

Boost Charitable Trust was created in 2005 to Build on Over-looked Sporting Talent. Their aim is to give opportunities to those who wish to fulfil their sporting ambitions, at any level. In particular, the Trust wants to fund projects that promote access to sport for socially or economically disadvantaged individuals, people with disabilities.Since inception, Boost has supported a number of organisations, with grants totalling in excess of £2 million. The majority has been focussed within the United Kingdom.  

The Kelly Family Charitable Trust was founded in 2004 as a grant-giving body. The Trust is interested in funding charities whose activities involve the whole family in initiatives that encourage and nurture a supportive structure within the family unit, and whose aims include the development of strong and supportive family bonds by helping all elements of the family unit to grow together and support each other. Applications are also welcomed from sports and health-related charities whose activities meet the trust's criteria. Grants of between £1,000 and £5,000 are available, but higher grants may be considered.

The Dickie Bird Foundation was founded by former Test Cricket umpire Harold "Dickie" Bird MBE in March 2004, and provides grants, to assist financially disadvantaged young people under 16 years of age to participate in the sport of their choice irrespective of their social circumstances, culture or ethnicity. The aim of the grant is to help young people, who, through no fault of their own, are disadvantaged or underprivileged due to the financial situation of their family/guardians or carers and therefore are unable to follow or continue in the sport of their choice. The grants are to help with the cost of essential sports equipment.

The Sport England Small Grants Programme focuses on using sport and physical activity to bring communities together and tackle inequalities. Projects eligible for funding can include activities that enhance physical health, promote community cohesion, and reduce social disparities. The programme aims to make physical activity accessible to diverse groups, especially those who face barriers to participation.

Reaching Communities provide grants to help improve local communities and the lives of people most in need, including hard to reach communities. There is a small revenue and a capital scheme and a larger buildings only fund. All projects must address one or more of the following outcomes. People have better chances in life, with better access to training and development to improve their life skills;  Stronger communities, with more active citizens, working together to tackle their problems;  Improved rural and urban environments, which communities are better able to access and enjoy; and Healthier and more active people and communities.

Awards for All, England offers grants of between £300 and £20,000 for projects that improve communities, and the lives of people within them. It is for voluntary and community groups, schools and health organisations, parish and town councils.  To do this Awards for All fund projects that meet one or more of the following outcomes: People have better chances in life - with better access to training and development to improve their life skills; Stronger communities - with more active citizens working together to tackle their problems; Improved rural and urban environments - which communities are better able to access and enjoy; and Healthier and more active people and communities.