Grassroots Grants

Who can apply?

The purpose of Grassroots Grants is to support small informal voluntary and community groups and organisations, many of who are dependent on volunteers. The Community Foundation particularly welcomes applications from groups that have not had a grant of any kind before.

In light of the current economic climate and its impact, the Community Foundation will focus its support on projects which will reach the most disadvantaged people, and will achieve a long term benefit for communities in these difficult times.

The types of group or organisation that we will fund through Grassroots Grants will:
be a not-for-profit, third sector voluntary or community group.
have been active in the local community for not less than 12 months prior to 31 March 2010.
be able to prove that their income over the last three years, or over the group’s life if they haven’t been going for three years, has been less than £30,000 per year on average.
be volunteer led i.e. most of the work is being done by volunteers rather than paid staff.
be connected with and /or meeting the needs of their local community.
have a governing document, though the group does not have to be a registered charity.
If you are not sure if your group fits these criteria, does not have a governing document or is missing something else from this list please contact The Community Foundation on 01380 729284 to see if we can help.

How much can be applied for?

Grants of between £250 and £5,000 are available. £5,000 is the maximum that any one group can have from the Grassroots Fund, whether it is from The Community Foundation for Wiltshire or Swindon or from another area. This is the last year of the Grassroots Programme so any grants awarded must be spent in full by the 31st March 2011. Please make sure that if you are successful in your application you can use your grant in full within this timescale, otherwise we may be required to recover any unspent funds.

Please be aware that there is a heavy demand for this fund and it is likely that only exceptional applications will achieve the maximum award. We would ask applicants to be realistic about their need for funding.

What can be applied for?

Grassroots Grants can fund both capital and revenue costs of any kind.

How to apply?

Please follow the links to the “Expression of Interest Form”. Send this to us and we will contact you to let you know if you are eligible to apply to Grassroots or any of the other Community Foundation Funds.
Applications are considered at a quarterly grants panel meeting in March, June, September and December. The next closing dates for applications will be Friday 6th August 2010 for September decisions.

Record number of grants made during 2009/2010

Our final calculations for our end of year accounts have shown that we distributed £913,000 in grants to 255 groups during 2009/2010.
Read more »

The Community Foundation Demonstrates Quality

Wiltshire and Swindon are one of the first two Community Foundations to receive enhanced quality accreditation as part of a pilot project for the Community Foundation Network.
Read more »