Your weekly funding news and deadlines update from GrantTracker.
Funding News
Currently in development, Going Places will establish five networks, with each network producing two touring exhibitions over five years (2025-2030). The scheme supports museums and galleries to collaborate with one another, and their local communities, to create these new and innovative touring exhibitions. Applications open on 29 August, with network building workshops taking place in September and October.
The Weston Loan Programme with Art Fund provides funding and training for regional museums and galleries to secure important strategic loans from major UK collections. Made possible with the support of the Garfield Weston Foundation, the programme aims to encourage new and stronger relationships between regional and national museums and galleries. Grants of up to £35,000 available. Next round opens 23 October 2023.
Halifax Foundation for NI: Grant Programmes
The Community Grants Programme can support day to day activities of registered charities operating in Northern Ireland for new and existing projects. They cover a wide range of costs including, rent and running costs, materials and equipment and salaries. Their average grant is approximately £4,500. Rolling programme – no deadlines.
The Matched Giving Scheme is run by the Lloyds Bank Foundation, Bank of Scotland, Halifax Foundation and Lloyds Banking Group staff in UK or Channel Islands, including Group subsidiaries. Claim up to £1,000 for a charity of your choice.
Belfast City Council funding arts, heritage, and urban greening
Their Cultural Multi-Annual Grants offers two funding strands for festivals & events and arts & heritage, available for two or four years. Four Year Festivals and Events - Minimum grant per year: £50,000. Two Year Festivals and Events - Minimum grant per year: £10,000. Four Year Arts and Heritage Organisations - Minimum grant per year: £40.00 to £30,000. Two Year Arts and Heritage Organisations - Minimum grant per year: £10,000. Currently open to applications; closing 6 October 2023 (noon).
The Grey to Green Demonstrator Project aims to make the city centre greener. They are inviting expressions of interest from organisations with the expertise and capability to undertake a city centre demonstrator project, to include a social farm or garden, potentially located on a council owned site. Providing capital support of up £50,000 to incentivise the creation of a demonstrator project that would include an element of city centre social farming/gardening or community food growing. Expression of Interest deadline 21 August 2023 (5pm).
Ufi VocTech Trust: VocTech Future of Skills Award 2023
The VocTech Future of Skills Award is a new competition to share and celebrate big, tech-enabled ideas of how changes to the UK skills system could transform the way adults get the skills they need for work. They want you to tell them ‘how can technology make that system work better for everyone?’ Finalists each receive a prize of £1,000. Winning ideas will each receive a £5,000 cash prize and be promoted across the vocational education community, including as a highlight of the Week of VocTech 2023. Opens 15 August 2023.
Leathersellers Company Charitable Fund: Small Grants
The Small Grants Programme will award grants of up to £5,000 to organisations with an annual income of less than £200,000. Partnerships are encouraged. The number of applications will be capped and accepted on a first-come, first-served basis e.g. the first 45 applications after each round opens will be able to be submitted. Open to charities and Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIOs) registered and operating in the UK. August round currently open. Next round opens 4 September and closes when the 45 applications cap is reached.
Upcoming Deadlines
National Churches Trust: Medium Grants
This programme offers their medium sized grants of between £3,000 and £10,000 towards urgent and essential maintenance and repair projects costing between £20,000 and £80,000. Also project development and investigative work up to RIBA planning stage 1, to support churches preparing for a major project, and in developing their project to the point at which they can approach a major grant funder. Grants will never exceed 50% of the net project costs (for this phase). Deadline 15 August 2023 (midnight).
The Enkalon Foundation has to date given out over £5 million across Northern Ireland via 6,500 grants with £2.6 million of this funding within the former Antrim Borough. Applications to the General Fund may be for core running or project costs but must clearly demonstrate the need for the funding and how the group, users and wider community will benefit from it. Whilst applications of up to £6000 are accepted, the average grant is £1000. Deadline 16 August 2023.
As an IT charity, all projects they fund must make use of information technology, and must relate to one or more of their priority areas - education, inclusion, IT for charities, and public understanding of IT. Projects need to demonstrate an innovative use of IT, be scalable for wider replication, and be sustainable over time. Open to registered charities, educational establishments or organisations with a formal not-for-profit constitution (such as a community interest company). They are a small funder so usually only fund projects up to £15,000. Deadline 16 August 2023 (5pm).
National Lottery Grants for Heritage – £250,000 to £10million
Funding projects that connect people and communities to the national, regional and local heritage of the UK, they accept applications from not-for-profit organisations and partnerships led by not-for-profit organisations. These grants support all types of heritage projects in the UK. Please note: Expressions of Interest will temporarily close in September, development applications will temporarily close in November (delivery round applications are not affected), and applications for grants from £250,000–£10m will reopen in January under new Heritage 2033 guidance (see here for more information on upcoming changes and new strategy). Deadline 17 August 2023 (noon).
The Scops Arts Trust awards one-off grants and also considers multi-year funding. For the final meeting of 2023, they are still especially interested in supporting performing arts projects aimed at adults and projects which will benefit all ages across the generations, not only children. Also of interest is, organisations planning smaller regional festivals with a significant music element in areas where there is little arts provision, due to socio-economic circumstances or geographically remote locations. They continue to consider applications for music education projects for children and young people, but their preferred projects focus on adults and whole communities. Deadline 22 August 2023.
Fundraising Support for autumn 2023
Events
Meet the Fundraising Regulator - In Person | NICVA
This session in NICVA with Fundraising Regulator is an opportunity to hear more about their work, the guidance they provide and how they can support you. It is also a chance to hear about their upcoming review of the Code of Fundraising Practice.
Free Online Introductory Fundraising Workshops for NICVA Members
We are hosting a series of FREE workshops for NICVA members introducing a different fundraising topic or aspect of fundraising. These sessions are an opportunity to find out about an area of fundraising that's new to you, top up your existing knowledge, or be a snapshot into an element of fundraising you'd like to explore. Each workshop is led by NICVA’s Fundraising Advice Officer.
- Maximising your Income - 20 September 2023; 12:00pm to 12:45pm
- Using your internet channels for better fundraising - 18 October 2023; 4:00pm to 4:45pm
- Communicating your Need - 15 November 2023; 12:00pm to 12:45pm
Training
A Practical Guide to Completing Funding Applications
As the voluntary and community sector face a squeeze on finances from a variety of sources, securing funding is essential but it’s a competitive environment. This in-person event gives a useful overview and the practical advice you need to complete funding applications with a focus on addressing emerging funding priorities.
- 30 November 2023
- 9:30am to 12:30pm
- Paid (£35 members £50 non-members)
Fundraising Clinics
Autumn 2023 Fundraising Clinics for NICVA Members
These popular, free fundraising advice clinics provide members with an hour-long chance to discuss and address specific fundraising needs. The sessions can be delivered online, in-person or over the telephone.
Taking place, the last Tuesday in September, October, and November, you can book a slot from 10am until 4pm. See links below:
Resources
Explore the Fundraising Hub for a wide range of resources to support your fundraising journey. A few are below:
NICVA encourages organisations to follow the Code of Fundraising Practice. This article provides information about The Code and The Fundraising Regulator.
An overview of the fundraising series and links to six resources that were developed from the training sessions. To help share and disseminate the knowledge learnt.
NICVA hosted the #Digitalfundraising series, consisting of 6 webinars. This article provides the webinar recordings and resources as well as other resources linked to the topic of digital fundraising.
Celia Currie, Stakeholder and Policy Manager for Northern Ireland, reflects on the importance of volunteers in fundraising and why it's important for charities to understand what type of fundraising is being carried out.
Mark Creaney, from The National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF), talks about how the largest community funder across the UK is supporting communities who are seeking to minimise their impact on the environment.
GrantTracker
Get ahead with GrantTracker and access over 1000 funding schemes in NI's leading database. Just £100 a year for NICVA members and £145 for non-members. Sign up here.