Good grief, how is it February already?
January seemed to go on forever, and be over in a flash – all at the same time. Like some kind of weird time-warp.
I’m keeping myself pretty busy at the moment. Lots of new projects about to start, lots of learning, reading, discovering and networking.
I thought it might be nice to share a few things here – not all of it is about grants and funding – because its important to get a bit of life/work balance isn’t it!
I’m reading: Local by Alastair Humphries – to be honest, I’m finding it hard going but I think that’s mainly the challenge to sit down and find time to read!
I’m watching: CamperVibe yes, I’m a You Tube fan – and I find these two absolutely inspirational. It was a close call, I also wanted to include Philly & Keeley
I’m listening: Charity Digital Podcast
I’m doing: I’m back at the climbing gym and loving it (but the old muscles are hurting…)
I’m learning: very slowly how to navigate SubStack – any experts out there please get in touch!
Please forward this email to any friends, co-workers or colleagues who work in the third sector or schools – help me to help more people! If they (or you) want to receive it direct – the sign up link is below.
#Funding News
Three Guineas Fund Holiday activity schemes for autistic children and young people. This scheme provides grants of up to £15,000 to activity schemes for autistic children and young people, and their siblings, which run in the school holidays. Grants are usually for part of the costs.
This programme is for:
- Autistic-specific activity programmes that run in the school holidays in the UK (including sessions for siblings).
Or:
- The costs to include autistic children and young people who require one-to-one or greater support to take part in other (non autistic specific) play and activity schemes.
Won’t fund
- Residential activities.
- Projects that use Applied Behavioural Analysis or other contested forms of coercive behavioural control.
- Schools, nurseries, local authorities or NHS Trusts.
The deadline for applications is 6pm on Friday 28th February 2025.
Green Heat Network Fund (GHNF): is a capital grant fund that supports:
- the commercialisation and construction of new low and zero carbon (LZC) heat networks (including the supply of cooling)
- the retrofitting and expansion of existing heat networks
It aims to develop and grow the heat network market and to address some of the challenges of decarbonising the UK’s heat sector.
The GHNF is open to organisations in the public, private and third sectors in England. Round 9 is currently open to applications. It is scheduled to close on 11 April 2025.
The Charles Plater Trust is an independent charitable organisation that makes grants to a wide range of religious and non-religious organisations, people, and groups, supporting leadership, social action, and applied research projects across England and Wales.
They want to encourage three different types of change through their funding support.
- Change for individuals: Achieving significant change for individuals who are the most marginalised in the UK today.
- Change for organisations: Enhancing the capacity of organisations to respond more effectively to social needs.
- Change for wider society: Generating social or systemic change through policy or practice change.
The Antarctica in the Community Grant is a grant scheme that is helping make it possible for communities to run an event or project to explore and celebrate Antarctica and its important role in climate science. This scheme is funded by the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust (UKAHT), supported by the British Antarctic Territory.
Area: The UK
Suitable for: Community groups that are part of the British Science Association (BSA) Community Engagement Network
Funding size: £1000
Timeframe: Projects running from May 2025 to September 2025
This year’s themes:
Bringing Antarctica to Life
Hidden Heroes of Antarctic Exploration
Antarctica’s Impact on Our World
Barcapel Foundation The next Board meeting will take place on Monday 19th May 2025 and application forms should be submitted by email to admin@barcapelfoundation.org by no later than Friday 21st March 2025
The foundation awards grants predominantly, but not exclusively, to charities operating in Scotland. The three priority areas of interest for funding are health, heritage and youth.
Bentley’s Advancing Life Chances Small Grants Programme. support charitable organisations that help communities in 19 locations across the UK. Provides grants up to £500 to support charitable organisations working with vulnerable, disadvantaged or under-represented communities. The locations selected are those where Bentley has a presence in the community. To be eligible, organisations must be located within a 20-mile radius of the sites in the locations listed on their website
#Just for Schools
British Science Week 2025 Activity Packs are available to download now!
This year, the Week takes place 7-16 March – but you can start celebrating today. Their FREE packs are chock full of activities, games and experiments you can include in lessons and STEM clubs!
The theme of the packs is ‘Change and adapt’, which covers a lots of topics, from climate change to building pulley systems, and they provide three packs which cater to all age groups.
Crest Awards – Engage funding offer schools in challenging circumstances funding to run CREST Awards with their students.
Schools could receive £350 funding for equipment, teacher CPD etc, plus up to £350 worth of free CREST Awards. To be eligible your school must have one of the following:
- at least 30% of pupils eligible for pupil premium or equivalent
- at least 30% of pupils from ethnic minority backgrounds
- a rural postcode.
Applications are open now and close on 4 February.
Education Endowment Fund Apply for funding for programmes focused on post-16. (Spring 2025) Post-16 funding round priority areas:
- Attendance
- EdTech and AI
- GCSE resits
- Transition from school to college
Please note that this round has two separate application forms depending on the funding stream best suited for the programme – one for pilot projects, and one for efficacy and effectiveness trials.
Closing date: Friday 14th March 2025 at 11am.
#Useful Stuff
Women & Sport Insight Hub – Sport England Evaluation Framework is a step-by-step guide that will help you build measurement and evaluation into the design and delivery of your sport and physical activity project.
The Framework is based on three phases – Design, Implementation and Learning. Within these are six steps to help you build an approach to measurement and evaluation compatible and proportionate for your project.
UK Poverty 2025 launch webinar
UK Poverty report offers a comprehensive analysis of poverty in the UK. The report draws on a range of data to identify who is most affected, how poverty levels have changed over time, and what lies ahead. The report provides an in-depth look at overall poverty rates, deep poverty and persistent poverty, and how these vary between different groups across the UK (including family type, ethnicity, disability, housing, work and benefit receipt.)
Registrations for Make Music Day 2025 are now open.
This year, Make Music Day falls on a Saturday, which they hope will make it easier for community music groups up and down the country to take part. However, they are also inviting schools to organise their events on Friday 20th June.