Community Development704+ Funders

Community Development Grants & Funding

There are 704 UK funders offering grants for community development charities, with typical awards from £100 to £4,500,000.

Community development funding supports the organisations and initiatives that strengthen local areas across the UK. This encompasses community centres, neighbourhood projects, civic participation, social cohesion, and place-based regeneration. Many of the UK's largest funders — including the National Lottery Community Fund, Garfield Weston Foundation, and local community foundations — prioritise grassroots organisations that are rooted in and responsive to their communities. Funding is available for both capital projects (building renovations, community spaces, equipment) and revenue work (staffing, activities, outreach). Community development grants often favour a participatory approach, where local residents are involved in identifying needs and designing solutions. Rural communities, post-industrial areas, and urban estates with high deprivation frequently receive targeted support. The trend toward devolution and community ownership of assets has also created new funding streams for community land trusts, community energy projects, and social enterprises.

Quick Stats

Total Funders
704
Grant Range
£100 - £4,500,000
Open to Applications
48%

Community Development Funders

174 of 704 match your filters

Checked against verified programme data for 183 of 704 funders. 521 not yet verified are listed below; 9 that don't fit were excluded.

1989 Willan Charitable Trust

Matching programme: The 1989 Willan Charitable Trust

The 1989 Willan Charitable Trust, established in 1989 and governed by Willan Trustee Limited, is a UK-based funder dedicated to alleviating social and...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £10,000

Action Together CIO

Matching programme: Ashton Parish Church Charity Small Grants Programme

Action Together CIO, established in 2016 through the merger of Voluntary Action Oldham and Community and Voluntary Action Tameside, serves as the infr...

Grant Range
£500 - £25,000

Addington Fund

Matching programme: Emergency Relief (Forage Aid)

The Addington Fund is an independent UK charity established in 2001 in response to the classical swine fever and foot-and-mouth outbreaks, dedicated t...

Grant Range
Up to £3,000

Adnams Community Trust

Matching programme: Adnams Community Trust

The Adnams Community Trust, established in 1990 by Adnams PLC—a historic brewery based in Southwold, Suffolk—channels at least 1% of the company's ann...

Grant Range
£100 - £2,500

Alfred Williams Charitable Trust

Matching programme: Alfred Williams Charitable Trust

The Alfred Williams Charitable Trust, established in 1973 by Mr. Alfred Williams and governed by trustees with deep Suffolk connections, is a grant-ma...

Grant Range
Contact funder

Architectural Heritage Fund

Matching programme: Project Viability Grants (PVG) - Northern Ireland

The Architectural Heritage Fund (AHF), a UK-registered charity founded in 1976, champions the conservation and sustainable reuse of historic buildings...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £100,000

Arts Council England

Matching programme: National Lottery Project Grants

Arts Council England is the national development agency championing arts, museums, and libraries, rooted in a post-war vision to advance creativity fo...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £30,000

Ashley Family Foundation

Matching programme: Revenue Grants

The Ashley Family Foundation, established in 1986 by Sir Bernard and Laura Ashley, embodies a mission to harness creative enterprise for community ben...

Grant Range
£500 - £10,000

Barking and Dagenham Giving

Matching programme: Give it a Go Fund

Barking and Dagenham Giving is a place-based funder dedicated to tackling deprivation, inequality, and limited opportunity in one of England's most di...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £10,000

Baywind Energy Community Trust

Matching programme: Main Grant Programme

Baywind Energy Community Trust champions community-owned renewable energy and environmental sustainability, rooted in the pioneering ethos of the UK's...

Grant Range
£100 - £5,000

Benefact Trust Limited

Matching programme: Building Grants

Benefact Trust Limited, formerly Allchurches Trust, is an independent UK-registered charity established in 1972 with roots in 1887, headquartered in G...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £25,000

Berkeley Charitable Foundation

Matching programme: Resilience Fund

The Berkeley Charitable Foundation, established in 2011 by the Berkeley Group, is a corporate foundation dedicated to empowering young people and comm...

Grant Range
Up to £90,000

Bolton Community and Voluntary Services

Matching programme: Bolton Housing Partnership Grants – Individuals

Bolton Community and Voluntary Services (Bolton CVS) is a registered charity and local infrastructure organisation dedicated to strengthening the volu...

Grant Range
£3,000 - £5,000

Brighton Rainbow Fund

Matching programme: Grassroots Community Fund

The Brighton Rainbow Fund, established in 2011 as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation by James Ledward and Paul Elgood, functioned as a grassroots ...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £20,000

Camden Giving

Matching programme: We Make Camden Kit - Growth Grant

Camden Giving is an independent charity founded in 2017, dedicated to ending poverty and inequality in the London Borough of Camden by empowering resi...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £10,000

Catherine Cookson Charitable Trust

Matching programme: Main Grant Programme

The Catherine Cookson Charitable Trust embodies Dame Catherine Cookson's vision to transform lives in North East England communities through enduring ...

Grant Range
£100 - £100,000

Charities of Thomas Wade and Others

Matching programme: Small Grants Programme

Charities of Thomas Wade and Others, known as Wade's Charity, is a historic Leeds-based grant-making trust established in 1530 by Thomas Wade during H...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £15,000

Clarion Futures

Matching programme: Digital Grants Programme

Clarion Futures is the charitable foundation of Clarion Housing Group, the UK's largest housing association, established as the successor to William S...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £5,000

Co-Operative Community Investment Foundation

Matching programme: Funding Futures Programme

The Co-operative Community Investment Foundation, known as the Co-op Foundation, is the charitable arm of the Co-operative Group, established in 2002 ...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £30,000

Colyer-Fergusson Charitable Trust

Matching programme: Brighter Futures

The Colyer-Fergusson Charitable Trust, an independent grant-making charity founded in 1969 by Sir James Colyer-Fergusson, is dedicated to improving li...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £60,000

Community Foundation for Northern Ireland

Matching programme: RTÉ Toy Show Appeal Community Grants Round

The Community Foundation for Northern Ireland, established in 1979 as the Northern Ireland Voluntary Trust, is an independent grant-making body with o...

Grant Range
£3,000 - £20,000

Community Foundation for Wiltshire & Swindon

Matching programme: Community Grants

Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation, founded in 1975 as an independent charity (formerly Community Foundation for Wiltshire & Swindon), tackles...

Grant Range
£750 - £5,000

Community Foundation in Wales

Matching programme: Fund for Wales

Community Foundation Wales, established in November 1998 as a registered charity and company, drives philanthropy to strengthen Welsh communities by c...

Grant Range
£500 - £2,000

Consolidated Charity of Burton Upon Trent

Matching programme: Financial Assistance for Individuals (Education, Personal Development, Sport, Arts)

The Consolidated Charity of Burton upon Trent is a centuries-old endowed charity rooted in local philanthropic traditions, dedicated to delivering pub...

Grant Range
£1,500 - £34,000

Cornwall Community Development Limited

Matching programme: ACRE Village Hall Capital Grants

Cornwall Community Development Limited, operating as Cornwall Rural Community Charity (CRCC), was established in 2001 from the Cornwall Rural Communit...

Grant Range
£500 - £10,000

Corra Foundation

Matching programme: Boost Fund

Corra Foundation, an independent Scottish grant-maker established in 1985 (originally Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland), drives positive change, opp...

Grant Range
Contact funder

Cripplegate Foundation

Matching programme: Catalyst Programme

Cripplegate Foundation drives lasting social change to build an equal society free from poverty and inequality, empowering residents to access opportu...

Grant Range
Up to £5,000

Croydon Voluntary Action

Matching programme: Croydon Community Grant Fund

Croydon Voluntary Action (CVA) is the leading umbrella organisation for Croydon's voluntary and community sector, established to promote charitable pu...

Grant Range
£500 - £5,000

Cumbria Community Foundation

Matching programme: Cumbria Community Foundation Grants

Cumbria Community Foundation, established in 1999, is an independent UK community foundation dedicated to tackling poverty, enhancing quality of life,...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £10,000

David Brownlow Charitable Foundation

Matching programme: Small Grants Programme

The David Brownlow Charitable Foundation drives positive social change by enhancing lives of disadvantaged individuals and communities through persona...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £50,000

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Matching programme: FleX Competition (Flexibility Exchange Demonstrator)

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), established in 2016 through merger of business innovation and energy climate funct...

Grant Range
£50,000 - £10,000,000

Department for Transport

Matching programme: Transport Research and Innovation Grants (TRIG)

The Department for Transport (DfT), a UK ministerial department established in 2002, provides leadership and strategic frameworks for reliable, safe, ...

Grant Range
£30,000 - £45,000

Derbyshire Environmental Trust Limited

Matching programme: Derbyshire Environmental Trust Capital Funding Scheme

Derbyshire Environmental Trust Limited, founded in 1997 as a registered charity in response to the Landfill Communities Fund, channels landfill tax re...

Grant Range
£2,500 - £20,000

Developing Healthy Communities (DHC) Limited

Matching programme: PHA Short Term Funding

Developing Healthy Communities (DHC) Limited is a longstanding Northern Ireland-registered charity with over 30 years of experience transforming lives...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £5,000

Devon Community Foundation

Matching programme: Small Grants

Devon Community Foundation, established in 1996 as Devon’s largest independent grantmaker and a registered charity, harnesses local philanthropy to st...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £5,000

Dorset Community Foundation

Matching programme: EDC Project Fund for Strength & Sustainability

Dorset Community Foundation is an independent grantmaker dedicated to improving lives and fostering thriving, united communities across Dorset by chan...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £5,000

Duke of Devonshire's Charitable Trust

Matching programme: Duke of Devonshire's Charitable Trust

The Duke of Devonshire's Charitable Trust is a family-led foundation embodying stewardship, heritage responsibility, and community flourishing through...

Grant Range
£250 - £10,000

E H Smith Charitable Trust

Matching programme: General Charitable Grants

The E H Smith Charitable Trust, family-founded in 1944, embodies community responsibility by reinvesting business profits to uplift local communities ...

Grant Range
£500 - £10,000

Ebico Trust for Sustainable Development

Matching programme: Build. with Ebico

The Ebico Trust for Sustainable Development, established in 2008 from funds of Ebico Limited—a not-for-profit energy provider founded in 1998 to comba...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £60,000

Edgar E Lawley Foundation

Matching programme: General Grant Programme

The Edgar E Lawley Foundation, established in 1961, drives a philanthropic mission to advance social welfare and alleviate disadvantage through flexib...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £2,000

Elmgrant Trust

Matching programme: Individual Grants

The Elmgrant Trust, family-founded in 1936 by Leonard and Dorothy Elmhirst and Beatrice, carries forward the Dartington Hall ethos of rural regenerati...

Grant Range
Contact funder

England and Wales Cricket Trust

Matching programme: County Grants Fund

The England and Wales Cricket Trust (EWCT), a registered charity (no. 1112540), promotes community participation in cricket as a means of healthy recr...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £50,000

Eric Wright Charitable Trust

Matching programme: Community Grants

The Eric Wright Charitable Trust embodies a founding vision of responsible business stewardship channeling construction industry profits into perpetua...

Grant Range
£500 - £24,000

Essex Community Foundation

Matching programme: East of England Co-op Community Cares Fund

Essex Community Foundation, established in 1996, is an independent charitable foundation dedicated to enhancing quality of life for Essex residents by...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £7,000

Football Foundation

Matching programme: Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund

The Football Foundation, established in 2000 by the Premier League, The FA, and the UK Government via Sport England, is the UK's largest sports charit...

Grant Range
£300 - £100,000

Forever Manchester

Matching programme: Bright Futures Fund

Forever Manchester is an independent charitable foundation dedicated to empowering grassroots community activity and building resilient neighbourhoods...

Grant Range
£500 - £1,500

Forever Notts

Matching programme: Brian Treffry and Joan Oliver Fund

Forever Notts, formerly Nottinghamshire Community Foundation and established in 1997 as an independent registered charity, serves as a vital broker fo...

Grant Range
£350 - £10,000

Forrester Family Trust

Matching programme: Small Grants

The Forrester Family Trust, established in 1986 by the Forrester family, is an independent charitable foundation dedicated to empowering small chariti...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £40,000

Fort Augustus & Glenmoriston Community Company

Matching programme: Apprenticeship Scheme

Fort Augustus & Glenmoriston Community Company, established in 2007 by the local Community Council in the Scottish Highlands, is a community-led organ...

Grant Range
Up to £25,000

Foundation Scotland

Matching programme: Achlachan Wind Farm Community Fund

Foundation Scotland, Scotland's sole community foundation, drives a mission to empower communities by bridging innovative ideas with resources, foster...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £35,000

Showing 50 of 174 matching funders

521 funders not yet verified against these filters

We haven't confirmed these funders' programme details yet, so they may or may not fit. Showing the first 10.

Tips for Applying to Community Development Funders

Community development funders want to see that your organisation is genuinely rooted in the area you serve. Demonstrate local knowledge by referencing specific neighbourhood dynamics, community assets, and the relationships you have built over time — not just census data. Describe a participatory needs assessment process: how did residents themselves identify the issues your project addresses, and how will they continue to shape delivery? Partnership working is essential in this space, so detail your collaborations with other local organisations, statutory agencies, and community groups, explaining what each partner brings and how you avoid duplication. Address sustainability explicitly — funders need confidence that your work will continue beyond the grant period through community ownership, income generation, volunteer capacity, or integration into local infrastructure. Include community asset mapping that shows you understand what already exists and how your project builds on strengths rather than starting from scratch. Strong applications demonstrate that the community drives the agenda rather than the organisation imposing solutions. Show how you reach residents who are typically excluded from community engagement processes, and explain your approach to building social capital and civic participation alongside delivering specific project activities.

Frequently Asked Questions about Community Development Grants

What grants are available for community development charities in the UK?

There are 704+ UK funders offering grants for community development charities. These range from small community grants under £5,000 to large multi-year funding programmes exceeding £100,000. Use Fundermatcher to find the best match for your organisation.

How much funding can community development organisations get?

Grant amounts for community development charities vary widely depending on the funder and project. Typical grants range from £1,000 to over £100,000. Many funders offer multi-year funding for established organisations with a strong track record.

How do I apply for community development grants?

Start by identifying funders whose priorities align with your community development work. Fundermatcher matches your charity's profile against 704+ funders to find the best fit. Our AI assistant can then help you draft compelling grant applications.

How to Find the Right Community Development Funders

1

Describe Your Charity

Tell us what your charity does, who you help, and where you work. Takes 30 seconds.

2

Get Matched Instantly

Our AI ranks all 704 community development funders by how well they fit your specific work.

3

Write Winning Applications

Our AI assistant helps you draft and refine grant applications tailored to each funder.

Which of These 704 Funders Are Right for You?

Browsing 704 funders manually takes hours. Describe your charity once and get your top matches ranked by compatibility — in seconds.

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