Grant News

The National Lottery Community Fund has provided £3.2 million in funding for the Women's Urgent Support Fund, which will respond to the cost-of-living crisis faced by women.

Round one of the Fund, administered by the Smallwood Trust, will award three-year grants of between £15,000 and £60,000 to enable 20 women’s-led community organisations to respond to the increase in demand for urgent and basic needs from women in England who are most at risk of poverty due to the crisis.

The Fund aims to support up to 60 local community organisations with a turnover of less than £100,000 per year that are serving women, allowing up to 20,000 women to access vital support services over five years.

Examples of how funds may be used are:

• Organisational costs such as increasing or safeguarding the role of a key worker who is the first line of response to women in crisis.
• Oganisational costs such as covering increased rent for meeting spaces to allow and organisation to continue delivering services meeting basic needs of women in your communities.
• Services such as emergency provision and distribution of clothing, food and welfare packs to offset the cost-of-living crisis.

The deadline for applications is 5pm on the 19th May 2023.