Supporting Voluntary and Community Action
Not sure where to start to find the opportunities most suited to your organisation? This simple flow chart sets out the main types of funding available in the order we'd pioritise them, depending on your organisation's work.
For a detailed overview of funds available, who can apply and further information, please see this document. This will go out of date quickly so check back regularly for live updates.
For grant advice and feedback on draft applications, please call Jenny on 07904 099136 or email jenny@voscur.org
Many VCSE organisations will be struggling because of coronavirus, as it changes the shape of their services, their volunteers, staff, and their community. Below is a useful list of emergency grants that you might want to apply to and links to funders' websites. If you know of a grant that should be on this list, please email info@voscur.org to share it with us.
Foyle Foundation have grants available for Arts and Learning charities:
http://www.foylefoundation.org.uk/how-to-apply/
Quartet Community Foundation have grants of up to £10,000 available through the Coronavirus Recovery and Stabilisation Grant Programme. Charitable organisations in the West of England in need of funds to enable them to survive and continue to deliver key services can apply:
https://quartetcf.org.uk/grant-programmes/coronavirus-recovery-and-stabilisation/
Wales and West Safe and Warm Fund have grants of £500 to £5,000 available for charities, voluntary organisations and CIC's providing services during the emergency:
https://www.wwutilities.co.uk/services/safe-warm/the-safe-and-warm-fund/
TDS Foundation have grants of up to £10,000 available for organisations seeking to develop education for inexperienced landlords, and tenants, to improve the rental sector during the crisis:
https://tdsfoundation.org.uk/#apply-for-funding
Quartet Community Foundation have launched their Coronavirus Recovery and Stabilisation grant programme for charitable organisations in the West of England:
https://quartetcf.org.uk/grant-programmes/coronavirus-recovery-and-stabilisation/
7 Stars Foundation have funding available for charities across the UK looking after at risk young people and those who are supporting young child carers:
https://the7starsfoundation.co.uk/
Wesport will be disseminating funding from Sport England. They are requesting expressions of interest from partners who can help reduce the negative impact of COVID-19 and the widening of the inequalities in sport and physical activity:
http://www.wesport.org.uk/funding/sport-england-inequalities-fund/
BBC Children In Need, COVID-19 Large Grants Programme has grants available for organisations serving children and young people:
https://www.bbcchildreninneed.co.uk/grants/
ROSA has grants of £1000-£10,000 available for women's organisations responding to COVID-19, particularly those working with the most marginalised women:
http://rosauk.org/funds/rosas-covid-19-response-fund-small-grants/
Youth Futures Foundation have funds available for frontline and infrastructure organisations having a proven effect on young people's unemployment and looking to institute new work in response to COVID-19:
https://youthfuturesfoundation.org/grants/
£200million will be made available for small to medium organisations in England via the Government's new Coronavirus Community Support Fund, opening at 10am on Friday 22nd May:
Independent Age have grants of between £5,000 and £15,000 available for organisations reaching older people experiencing the most exclusion:
https://www.independentage.org/community/grants-fund
CLINKS COVID-19 response fund is open for applications from voluntary organisations working in the criminal justice system:
https://www.clinks.org/our-work/coronavirus-covid-19
DEFRA: Food Charities Grant Fund has funding available for front-line organisations providing food to people in financial need, or who have escaped abuse:
National Survivor Users Network has up to £1,000 available for user-led organisations and smaller unconstituted groups providing mental health support during COVID-19:
https://www.nsun.org.uk/nsun-covid-19-fund
Freelands Foundation has launched an Emergency Fund with grants of £1,500 to £2,500 for artists and freelance creative practitioners:
https://www.a-n.co.uk/news/freelands-foundation-emergency-fund
Social Investment Business can offer loans of £100,000 to £500,000 to social purpose organisations affected by the coronavirus pandemic:
https://sibgroup.org.uk/resilience-and-recovery-loan-fund
Power to Change has up to £25,000 per organisation available for Community Businesses that have experienced trading loss over the period April-June 2020. Must be either Power to Change grantees or partners:
https://www.powertochange.org.uk/news/emergency-support-community-businesses
Quartet Community Foundation has launched a small grant fund for Bristol groups facing increased demand during the emergency:
https://quartetcf.org.uk/apply-for-a-grant
The Chancellor has announced £750 million pot for frontline charities across the UK - £360 million direct from government departments and £370 million for smaller charities, including through a grant to the National Lottery Community Fund. For more about this, please see our news article.
The Youth Sector Support Fund has re-opened for applications from organisation working with children and young people aged 8-19. Applications to be submitted to Quartet Community Foundation:
https://quartetcf.org.uk/grant-programmes/bristol-city-council-youth-sector-support-fund-grant/;
Voscur can provide support with applications: https://www.voscur.org/yssf
The Leathersellers Company have announced grants of up to £3000 for organisations supporting: the homeless or those at risk of becoming homeless, provision of food and essential supplies, victims of domestic violence, nursing care to vulnerable patients:
https://leathersellers.co.uk/small-grants-programme/
Yapp Charitable Trust have grants of up to £3000 per year for core running costs for small charities (income under £40,000) supporting priority groups:
https://yappcharitabletrust.org.uk/what-we-fund/
(APPLICATIONS TEMPORARILY PAUSED) Sport England have launched the Community Emergency Fund for sport sector organisations - update 29/04: They are very keen to receive more applications from community organisations that are working with Low Socio-economic groups. These groups do not have to be delivering sport as their primary activity to receive funding:
https://www.sportengland.org/how-we-can-help/our-funds/community-emergency-fund
(PAUSED) Crisis have emergency grants of up to £5000 available, and grants of up to £50,000 available for longer term projects for organisations in the housing and homelessness sector:
Heritage sector organisations can apply to the Heritage Emergency Fund:
https://www.heritagefund.org.uk/news/coronavirus-update
The Prince's Trust and Natwest have launched the Enterprise Relief Fund, for businesses started up in the last four years and run by someone aged 18 - 30. Young people who are in the process of starting a business and don’t have any other source of income during the crisis are also eligible to apply for a grant.
Grants of up to £500 are available from Tesco Bags of Help COVID-19 Communities Fund for not for profit organisations:
https://tescobagsofhelp.org.uk/tesco-cv-fund/
The Barclays Foundation have announced a £100 million COVID-19 Community Aid Package - £50million will be donated to charities chosen by Barclays and £50million will be donated by matching their employees' personal donations (individual organisations cannot apply for this funding):
All National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF) funding decisions in the next six months (up to £300m of funding) will be devoted to responding to the COVID-19 crisis. The NLCF will prioritise existing grant holders and applicants with activities specifically geared to supporting communities through this crisis, and helping organisations overcome liquidity issues caused by COVID-19:
https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/about/coronavirus-updates
Big Society Capital have announce a £100million emergency loan fund for social enterprises, trading charities and small businesses:
(PAUSED) The Clothworkers Emergency Capital Programme has capital grants of up to £5,000 available for essential capital items to adapt or increase services in response to the pandemic:
https://www.clothworkersfoundation.org.uk/clothworkers-emergency-capital-programme/
Schroder Charity Trust has grants of up to £5000 available for both core costs and specific projects:
https://schrodercharitytrust.org/frequently-asked-questions-faqs
Existing members of Neighbourly can apply for grants of up to £400:
https://www.neighbourly.com/NeighbourlyCommunityFund
Donations to the BBC 's Big Night In on 23rd April will be matched by the government - a minimum of £20million has been pledged:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2020/the-big-night-in
National Emergencies Trust has opened a fundraiser for local groups - funds will be distributed by local community foundations:
https://nationalemergenciestrust.org.uk
Maanch is raising funds to support diverse projects run by organisations locally and globally to overcome the effect of Coronavirus pandemic:
https://maanch.com/outreach/covid-19
Fundraising platform, Crowdfunder, is currently free to use:
https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/funds/coronavirus-crisis
John Lewis and Partners are releasing extra funds to their Community Fund for individual shops to support priority local actions:
Staff teams in John Lewis and Waitrose stores will work with local communities to decide how best to use the funding.