Grant News
The Maurice & Hilda Laing Charitable Trust has announced that applications are open for its Warm Spaces Fund 2026-27, offering up to 25 grants of £1,000 to churches supporting communities in England's most deprived areas.
The fund will help churches running Warm Spaces during winter 2026-27. The Trust is one of the Laing Family Trusts, which provide charitable funding.
To qualify, churches must be located or working in areas ranked among the 10% most deprived in England, according to the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation. Warm Spaces must operate in church-run buildings and be registered with the Warm Welcome Campaign.
The type of projects that can be funded include:
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Community warm spaces – providing a warm, safe place for people struggling to heat their homes.
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Church-based drop-in sessions – offering somewhere warm for local residents to meet and spend time.
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Winter community hubs – providing a welcoming indoor space for people affected by fuel poverty or social isolation.
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Existing Warm Spaces – helping churches continue running their winter provision.
These are illustrative examples, rather than a list of activities explicitly approved by the funder.
Churches that received a £1,000 Warm Spaces grant from the Trust in the previous two years are ineligible during the first application round.
The closing date for applications is 3.30pm on 27 November 2027.
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