Grant Directories

The Cheshire 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 grants of up to £2,000 to young entrepreneurs in Cheshire and Warrington, aged between 18-30.  These grants can be used on costs to support a newly formed business, including equipment, training, specific marketing costs, and product development.

Deutsche Bank Awards for Creative Entrepreneurs (DBACE) supports visionary creative entrepreneurs between the ages of 18-30 who are driven by a mission to create and sustain social value through their enterprise. Through the programme Deutsche Bank aims to reach ambitious individuals from all backgrounds with ideas that will improve the lives of others and the communities we live in. An award from DBACE includes up to £20,000 investment to start or grow the enterprise; 12 months business support with MeWe360 and Deutsche Bank’s high calibre industry & business mentors; recognition and the opportunity to raise your profile within the industry; access to peer and influential industry contacts; leverage to bring in additional funding and access to further investment opportunities; specially tailored business and leadership training for the cohort of winners.

The Geovation Accelerator Programme allows the Ordnance Survey and HM Land Registry the opportunity to make it easier for businesses to use their data. The programme aims to help launch and grow innovative solutions to social, environmental and economic challenges that harness the power of data and technology. The programme will provide grant funding of up to £10,000 over 6 months with the opportunity for a further £10,000 of funding to build a product. The programme will also provide a wide range of support services. The programme has two streams: The Geotech stream is the call for any tech company creating location-based products and services; The Proptech stream is run in partnership with HM Land Registry. It supports innovative technology businesses to revolutionise the property industry using property and geospatial data.

The Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) Countryside Productivity Scheme provides funding for projects in England which improve productivity in the farming and forestry sectors and help create jobs and growth in the rural economy. This can include: water resource management and reservoirs; improving forestry productivity; adding value to Agri-food and improving farm productivity. Under the scheme, grants are available to help livestock, dairy, arable and horticultural farmers improve farm productivity through investing in new technology, such as robotics, to reduce cost or improve product quality. The scheme also offers funds for farmers and food processors to invest in new equipment and machinery to improve the processing of milk, meat and fruit. The minimum grant amount is £35,000 and can cover up to 40% of the eligible project costs.

The Reach Fund is a two year £4million grant programme that is funded by Access - The foundation for Social Investment and is available to social enterprises in England. The programme aims to test a new model for investment readiness support. Investment readiness has long been recognised as an issue that prevents charities and social enterprises from accessing social investment. This programme provides grant funding of up to £15,000 to pay for the support required for these organisations to become investment ready. To be eligible for funding organisations must be referred to Reach by their social investor (an approved access point) and complete the diagnostic tool on the website.

The Addington Fund helps farmers with short-term financial aid where emergency situations have or will create unforeseen additional expenditure. The Fund has for example, awarded grants to farmers in Northern England whose businesses have been affected by flooding to pay for some of the additional expenses involved such as extra grass keep due to land being underwater or animal transport costs.

The Stelios Philanthropic Foundation has a £100,000 prize fund for  disabled entrepreneurs in the UK to further the growth of their business, and become Stelios Disabled Entrepreneur of the Year.  To be eligible to enter individuals must be registered with a disability; own at least 50% of the business; the business must have been started since 2010; and the business must be registered in the UK. This Award is sponsored by Sir Stelios Hajiloannou, the entrepreneur best known for founding easyJet and is run by Leonard Cheshire which works to serve disabled people around the world.