Agnes Hunter Trust SCIO

The Trust funds registered charities working with disabled people in Scotland, including those with physical or mental impairments, learning disabilities, mental ill health, cancer, sensory impairments, autism, long-term conditions, and neurodiversity. It supports activities such as advice services, life-skills and employability training, volunteering schemes, and projects that promote independence and participation.

Funding is available for core costs, project delivery, and salaries. The Trust has a stated preference for smaller charities meeting a demonstrable need from their local community, causes that do not have a strong public profile, and charities developing innovative approaches, including pilot projects. Work must take place exclusively in Scotland.

Eligible applicants are registered charities (including CIOs) based in Scotland, working directly with disabled people in the country. The Trust prioritises smaller charities that show clear community need, especially those that are newly established or developing innovative approaches.

Beneficiaries include people with physical or mental impairments, learning disabilities, mental ill health, cancer, sensory impairments, autism, long-term conditions, and neurodiversity. Individual applicants are not eligible. There is no restriction on religious context.

The Trust does not fund capital works, equipment, transport, research, holidays or holiday camps for disabled people, general services for the elderly, animal welfare, or the breeding and training of assistance or guide dogs. It also excludes services that primarily promote political or religious beliefs, services normally provided by statutory bodies such as local authorities, hospitals, schools, universities, and colleges, expeditions or overseas travel, general advisory services such as Citizens Advice Bureau, and services that support very limited numbers of people with rare disabilities or illnesses.

The Trust offers grants that can be single-year or multi-year (typically up to three years), covering core costs, project delivery, and salary costs. It welcomes unsolicited applications and favours a flexible funding approach. Partnerships are not a stated requirement, but collaboration is not excluded.