The Edith M Ellis Charitable Trust is currently accepting applications for small grants from eligible UK organisations. Grants will be aimed at the following:

• Quaker work and witness 
• Peace-building and conflict resolution 
• Interfaith and ecumenical understanding 
• Community development work in the UK and overseas 
• Work with forced migrants, including internally displaced people 
• Sustainable development

Grant size

The Trust makes small grants of up to £3000 or interest free loans of up to £5000 repayable over 5 years. In exceptional circumstances larger grants may be given.

Grants are given for the following purposes:

• One-off grants 
• Time limited support 
• Seed money for start up projects

Eligible applicants

Grants are given to:

• UK registered charities, NGOs, public bodies and social enterprises. In normal circumstances with a turnover of less than approximately £350,000;
• Those who can demonstrate other sources of funding for their project; 
• Innovative charities/projects not normally able to attract other funding.

Deadline

31 December 2017.

How to apply

Applications need to be submitted online. For further details and to apply, please visit Edith M Ellis Charitable Trust.

The Heritage Lottery Fund is seeking applications for its Heritage Grants programme that is open for any type of project related to the national, regional or local heritage in the UK.

Examples of projects that the Fund would support:

• archaeological sites;
• collections of objects, books or documents in museums, libraries or archives;
• cultural traditions such as stories, festivals, crafts, music, dance and costumes;
• historic buildings;
• histories of people and communities;
• histories of places and events;
• the heritage of languages and dialects;
• natural and designed landscapes and gardens;
• people’s memories and experiences (often recorded as ‘oral history’);
• places and objects linked to our industrial, maritime and transport history;
• natural heritage including habitats, species and geology.

Grant size

Applicants can apply for a grant of over £100,000. The Heritage Lottery Fund will ask you to make a contribution towards
your project. They describe this as ‘partnership funding’ and it can be made up of cash, volunteer time, non-cash contributions, or a combination of all of these. Thus:

• If your total grant request is less than £1 million, you must contribute at least 5% of the costs of your development
  phase and 5% of the costs of your delivery phase.
• If your total grant request is £1 million or more, you must contribute at least 10% of the costs of your development
  phase and 10%  of the costs of your delivery phase.

Eligible applicants

• not-for-profit organisations; and
• partnerships led by not-for-profit organisations

Deadline

7 December 2017

How to apply

The application process has two stages:

1. You submit your first-round application with your delivery-grant request and, if needed, a development-grant request.
2. If you are successful, you enter your development phase and develop your more detailed second-round application, with your delivery-grant request.

For further details and to apply, please visit The Heritage Lottery Fund.

The FCC Scottish Action Fund of WREN offers funding of between £2,000 and £50,000 to projects from FCC Environment through the Scottish Landfill Communities Fund. WREN will consider applications across all types of projects included in the SLCF Objects including: land reclamation, community recycling, public amenities and parks, biodiversity and historic buildings.

Grant size

Grants of between £2,000 and £50,000 are available to projects with a total project cost of less than
£500,000. 

Work must be targeted on a specific site at a single location.

Eligibility

• Charities
• Community councils
• Churches
• Community organisations
• Voluntary groups
• Local Authorities  

Applicants can apply for funding as long as they are operated on a not-for-profit basis and have a formal constitution and bank account.

Deadline

Applications must be submitted by 5pm on 22 November 2017.

How to apply

Applications need to be submitted online. For further details and to fill in the online application form, please visit WREN.

 

The Prince’s Countryside Fund is seeking applications that support activities that results in a long-term positive impact on rural communities in the UK by helping the people that live and work in the countryside. 

For the September 2017 round, the organisation is looking to support farmers, rural businesses and communities affected by the 2015 flooding or projects that are focused on assisting the recovery and future resilience in these rural areas, particularly Cumbria, Lancashire, North Yorkshire, Herefordshire, Northumberland and Scotland.

Their grant programme currently aims to tackle the following key rural issues:

• To improve the prospects of viability for family farm businesses 
• To sustain rural communities and drive economic vibrancy 
• To support aid delivery in emergency and building resilience

Grant size

Applicants can request a maximum of £50,000 (inclusive of VAT) of funding to a maximum period of three years. 

Eligibility criteria

Eligible applicants include:

• Charities 
• Community Benefit Society 
• Community Interest Companies
• Companies limited by guarantee 
• Not for profit organisations 
• Social enterprises 
• Unincorporated associations

Deadline

Applications must be submitted by 5pm on Thursday 5th October.

How to apply

Applications are made online and organisations need to create an account first. For further details and to access the online application form, please visit The Prince’s Countryside Fund.

Firstport are inviting entries for the 2017 Social Innovation Competition, which celebrates individuals and start-up companies in Scotland with imaginative ideas to solve social issues, with a focus on culture, heritage and tourism.

Prizes

There are three £5000 awards up for grabs (including the young social innovator category for under 30s), combined with tailored support to refine and develop your idea.

Eligibility criteria

Applicants need to be: 

• Aged 16 or over;
• Permanently resident in Scotland;
• Most of the people who will benefit from your idea are resident in Scotland;
• The activities of your venture do not directly involve political campaigning or the advancement of religion;
• Your innovation is in the early stages of development – i.e. it is at the ‘idea’ or ‘start-up’ phase (up to 3 years) and has not begun trading on a regular basis.

Deadline

You must submit your application before noon on Monday 9th October 2017.

How to apply

You can apply using the online application form, where you also upload your your two minute video pitch. Your video pitch should cover the following:

• What is your social innovation? 
• How will it make the world a better place (social impact)? 
• Who will benefit from your innovation?
• Your vision for the future – how are you planning to grow and develop your innovation?

For further details and to attend a drop in session where you can have your questions answered, please visit Firstport.