Philanthropy
Church & Communities
C&C hero
Church & Communites Programme
People thrive when communities thrive

 

We aim to support churches, other faith and community-based organisations that strengthen communities and families.  The work seeks to build positive and inclusive relationships between people, increase a sense of belonging and reduce isolation.

Who we Fund

We welcome applications from churches, as well as other faith and community-based organisations operating in:

  • County Durham
  • London
  • Lincolnshire
  • Norfolk
  • Northumberland
  • Tees Valley
  • Tyne & Wear
What we Fund

Proposals or organisations that deliver in one of the following priority areas:

Building Stronger Communities

  • People in the most disadvantaged communities coming together to address what is important to them – we expect proposals to be either:
    • working in areas with the highest deprivation; or 
    • from organisations led and for minoritised communities - including black, minoritised ethnic, LGBT+ and disabled communities, as well as communities of women.
  • Community responses to support people who are refugees or homeless
    • proposals that enrich and improve people’s lives, as well as meeting basic needs

Delivering Better Outcomes for Families and Carers

Projects or organisations that provide in-depth whole family support to:

  • families facing poverty or other challenges
  • unpaid carers and their families

All proposals should:

  • Align closely to one of the priority areas listed above.
  • Demonstrate that they are both community rooted and focused.
  • Be from organisations that have a board, staff and volunteers that reflect the people they work with and the communities that they work in.
  • Demonstrate they promote positive mental wellbeing with the people they work with, as well as staff and volunteers.
  • Work with people in an asset-based way i.e. focus on what is strong, not what is wrong.
  • Show that they are person-centred, build positive inclusive relationships, promote wellbeing between people and increase a sense of belonging.
  • Be from organisations that provide support for people as long as they need it, whilst ensuring people are supported to take control of their own lives.
  • Be from organisations that are paying employees the Real Living Wage. If your organisation is currently unable to do this, please contact us to discuss.
Size and Type of Funding we Support

We make awards of between £10,000 to £120,000 in total.

Awards can be for up to three years.

Note that we will not generally award a grant that is over 50% of an organisation’s annual income in any given year.

We consider grants and loans or other social investments.

As a flexible funder, we consider awards that cover core, unrestricted, project or development costs.

In exceptional circumstances we fund capital costs; where there is an obvious lack of alternative local facilities.

As part of an award we can support costs towards the wellbeing of leaders, staff and volunteers.

We don't Fund
  • Work solely focused on young people or older people
  • Individuals
  • Proposals designed solely for the advancement of a particular faith
  • General appeals or financial support for costs that have already been incurred
Funding Process
1
Submit an Expression of Interest (EOI)

Briefly tell us: 

• What you want to do and why
• How much funding you need
• Total cost of the proposal

 

We will let you know whether to submit a full application within four weeks. 

 

2
Unsuccessful (EOI)

Click here to find out more about why you were not asked to submit a full application. 

3
Successful EOI: Invitation to Apply

We will be in touch to discuss your proposal further, let you know about the process and answer any questions you may have. 

4
Application Decision

An average full application takes between three to five months from submission of an EOI to final decision. 

*You will need to log into your account to complete an in-progress application or view previously submitted applications
Case Studies
Church & communities Programme
Older People & Housing Programme
Young People & Education Programme
Other areas you may be interested in
Insights & Learning

View our grants data and research findings. 

Funding FAQ's

Answers to some of the most common queries. 

Church Livings

We are patron to benefices in the Church of England.