This Week's New COVID-19 Funds
TESCO: Bags of Help COVID-19 Communities Fund (Changes Planned Post September 2020)
During the last 6 months, Tesco put aside £4 Million to support 8000 local good causes through their Bags of Help COVID-19 Communities Fund, which provided single payment weekly awards of £500 to groups across the UK. At the end of September the current Tesco Bags of Help COVID-19 Communities Fund scheme will close and in its place during October, November and December they will be providing grants of £1000 to support projects focused on local children and young people.
Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA): Rural Micro Capital Grant Scheme (Closing Date 12 Noon, 2nd October)
Funded by DAERA, the key aim of this Programme is to assist in tackling poverty and social isolation within rural communities across NI. Micro Capital grants of between £200 and £1,500 are available to rural community-led, voluntary organisations for projects tackling issues of local poverty and / or social isolation. Includes COVID-19 related projects. Managed by individual rural support networks across NI.
Arts Council of NI: Health and Safety Capital Programme (Closing Date, 4pm, 1st October)
Supported by the Department for Communities, the Arts Council of NI has designed this programme to enable organisations to purchase equipment and/or carry out minor works to their premises which will enable them to become functional during the Covid-19 restricted period. NB All purchases and minor works must be completed by Friday 5 March 2021.
Comic Relief (Metro): LGBTQ+ COVID-19 Fund
Grants of up to £15,000 to support LGBTQ+ organisations and groups across the UK in their vital role in supporting LGBTQ+ communities through the coronavirus pandemic and beyond. Funding is through the £585,000 fund from Comic Relief, raised from ‘The Big Night In’ and the grant scheme will be managed by Metro Charity, with the delivery partner in NI being The Rainbow Project.
NET/Disability Action NI: Disabled People's Organisations (DPO) COVID-19 Emergencies Fund (Closing 5th October)
The National Emergency Trust (NET) has made £1.5 million of funding available to support grassroots Disabled People’s Organisations (DPOs) across the UK, who have found it difficult to access funding, to respond to the Covid-19 needs of Disabled people. The funding is being administered and distributed in NI through Disability Action NI. The minimum you can apply for is £1,000 and the maximum is £25,000.
NB You can see ALL current and paused COVID-19 funding schemes on NICVA's constantly updated COVID-19 Fundraising Hub
Some Other New, non-COVID-19 Funds
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Gigibit Broadband Voucher Scheme
Homes and businesses in rural areas of the UK may be eligible for funding towards the cost of installing gigabit-capable broadband when part of a group scheme. Rural premises with broadband speeds of less than 100Mbps can use vouchers worth £1,500 per home and up to £3,500 for each small to medium-sized business (SME) to support the cost of installing new fast and reliable connections.
KFC Foundation: Community Grants Programme (Expression of Interest Deadline 25th September)
The KFC Foundation provides grants of £200 - £2,000 to support grassroots organisations in the heart of their restaurant’s communities. Organisations empowering young people in the UK to fulfill their potential by providing safe social spaces, mentoring or work, and social skills.
Invest NI: Innovation Vouchers (Application Closing Date, 3pm, 25th September)
This scheme offers £5,000 Innovation Vouchers to allow businesses or potential entrepreneurs to work with a public sector knowledge provider e.g. University, College or Institute of Technology (NI and ROI) on an innovation project.
D-Prize (Early Submission Deadline, Midnight PT (Pacific Time), 18th October
D-Prize supports new entrepreneurs who can distribute proven poverty interventions. They will award the most promising teams with up to $20,000 USD to launch a pilot version of your new organization wherever extreme poverty exists.