Funding Help

Funding Information and Sources for Voluntary and Community Groups

We know fundraising is a never ending task and one that takes resilience and stamina to maintain. We hope the information here can lighten the load by providing the main grant streams available locally and nationally.

The Community Development Team at RVS can advise you on completing funding applications and offer guidance to local groups with their fundraising activities. For further information about support, contact us on msc@rvs.org.uk

Funding newsletters are produced by Basingstoke Voluntary Action, on behalf of the Hampshire CVS Network. They contain a range of current funding and grant opportunities which are live right now. Latest edition

Grantway is a grant search portal available completely free of charge for individuals, charities and volunteer organisations to help find and obtain essential funding. The grant search portal is totally free of charge and can be found at www.grantway.com

There is a wide range of funding channels available, both local and national. See below for further details.

LOCAL

The Legacy Grant Managed by RVS

See The Legacy Grant Managed by RVS

Rushmoor Voluntary Services manage a small grants fund, available to organisations operating in the Rushmoor area. The purpose is to:

Support charitable purposes in Rushmoor and the surrounding area
Alleviate poverty, distress and sickness
Provide respite for carers

Rushmoor Borough Council

Visit Rushmoor Borough Council’s Community Grants page which has details of a range of grants available to voluntary, charitable, sports, arts and youth-related groups and clubs in the Rushmoor area.

Hampshire County Council

Hampshire County Council offers grants and funding to the voluntary sector including:

Adults’ Health & Care grants
County Councillor grants
Economy, Transport and Environment grants
Children’s Services grants
Culture, Communities and Business Services grants
Policy and Resources grants

NHS Frimley Clinical Commissioning Group Innovation Fund

The Innovation Fund aims to give communities the opportunity, support, courage and seed funding to suggest and progress innovative projects that could have a big impact on the health and wellbeing of local people. Projects recently supported include community gardens, walking groups and cookery skills for young people.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Community Foundation

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Community Foundation (HIWCF) is an independent charitable foundation, specialising in building funds and awarding grants on behalf of donors and fundholders. Their aim is to support the vital work of smaller charities, community groups and voluntary organisations, across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. They are part of a UK wide network of 57 Community Foundations.

Broadhurst Mental Health Charity

Broadhurst is a local charity which exists to provide help and support to those with serious mental illness in Rushmoor and the surrounding area. The purpose of their Small Grants is that each award should benefit the mental health of an individual either by aiding recovery (e.g., through improving housing, enabling a healthier lifestyle or access to educational or working opportunities), or preventing deterioration (e.g., through relief of financial stress).

Visit Broadhurst’s Small Grants web page for more details.

NATIONAL

The National Lottery Community Fund

National Lottery have about 14 different funding programmes. There is bound to one that fits your organisation, event or project! The main ones you may know about are:

Awards for All England Up to £20000

Reaching Communities – England Over £20000

Partnerships Over £20000

The National Lottery Community Fund distributes over £600m a year (raised by players of the National Lottery) to help communities thrive across the UK. They provide funding to a wide range of community projects from supporting health and wellbeing and more active communities to environmental projects and improving education, employment and life skills. There is a simple application process for grants under £20k and a more in-depth process for grants over £20k.

See their guidance on types of projects they fund, who can apply and what makes a good application.

Arts Council England National Lottery Grants

The Arts Council manage a range of grants for the arts for the national lottery. Arts Council Project Grants are the most accessible for the voluntary and community sector. There are other funding streams for individuals and specialist art projects.

Suez Communities Trust

SUEZ Communities Trust is an independent, not for profit funding organisation dedicated to making lasting improvements to community life and the natural environment. The Trust’s funding programmes are designed to improve a broad range of publicly accessible amenities which benefit a wide cross section of the community. Whether improving a local play area or a nationally significant historic building, each project has the potential to transform the community in which it is based.

Magic Little Grants Programme

The Magic Little Grants programme for 2023 is set to launch on 1st March 2023. Following its successful distribution of £500 grants to 2,650 charitable organizations in 2022, the programmme promises to be even bigger and better this year. The application period will run from March 1st until October 31st, 2023.The Magic Little Grants program offers a straightforward 20-minute application process, with successful applicants receiving a response within six weeks. To be eligible for a grant, organisations must be in their first year of operation or have an annual income of less than £250,000. Funding can be used to support new or existing projects, or cover core costs associated with ongoing work.Applicants may apply for funding for projects under one of the following themes

Providing support to improve mental health.
Enabling participation in physical activity.
Enabling participation in the arts.
Preventing or reducing the impact of poverty.
Supporting marginalised groups and tackling inequality.
Improving biodiversity and responding to the climate emergency.
Improving green spaces and increasing access to the outdoors.

The Magic Little Grants programme is open to organisations and their projects located in England, Scotland, or Wales. Schools can apply if they are a registered charity. Each group can only apply once in 2023 for a grant.

Find a Grant

The Cabinet Office has launched a digital service for organisations to apply for government grants.

Find out more about Find a Grant

Enterprise M3 Funding Finder

Enterprise M3’s interactive Funding Finder for all of the latest Government funding distilled into a single, searchable tool.

Find out more about Funding Finder

Easy Fundraising – Travel companies like TUI, Haven Holidays, Expedia, and Thomas Cook donate money to your organization when supporters book with them through easyfundraising, providing a free donation of up to 5% of the total spend at no extra cost to the shopper.

Other Resources

The National Council For Voluntary Organisations (NCVO)

The NCVO has a wealth of practical information and step by step guides, including different ways to search for grants and some recommended steps for first time grant applicants. They have their own search engine Funding Central which is available for NCVO members. For organisations with an annual turnover of £30k or less membership is free.

The Charities Aid Foundation

This organisation offers advice on finance, including grant programmes. See the website for more information.

Civil Society Media and Fundraising Magazine

This publication have produced a How To Guide to give you a broad overview of some of the key income channels used in the sector.

What’s included:

Insight into securing major gifts
How to adapt legacies in line with consumer behaviours
Guidance on writing successful grant applications
A look at what’s next for event fundraising
How to get the most from corporate partnerships

Plus:

Case studies from Parkinson’s UK, RSPB, Nationwide Community Grants
Programme, British Heart Foundation, NSPCC and many more
Practical exercises you can complete to help put your learning into practice
Plenty of resources for further learning

Download your free copy of ‘How to Guide: Next Steps in Fundraising’