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%
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Clear filtersFilters use programme details verified from each funder's own published guidance. Funders we haven't verified yet are listed separately below, never hidden.
Community Development Funders
45 of 704 match your filtersChecked against verified programme data for 121 of 704 funders. 583 not yet verified are listed below; 76 that don't fit were excluded.
1989 Willan Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching 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...
Addington Fund
Verified openMatching 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...
Alfred Williams Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching 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...
Arts Council England
Verified openMatching 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...
Baywind Energy Community Trust
Verified openMatching 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...
Catherine Cookson Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching 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 ...
Colyer-Fergusson Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching 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...
Community Foundation for Wiltshire & Swindon
Verified openMatching programme: Community Grants
Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation, founded in 1975 as an independent charity (formerly Community Foundation for Wiltshire & Swindon), tackles...
Cumbria Community Foundation
Verified openMatching 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,...
Derbyshire Environmental Trust Limited
Verified openMatching 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...
Devon Community Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: Small Grants
Devon Community Foundation, established in 1996 as Devon’s largest independent grantmaker and a registered charity, harnesses local philanthropy to st...
Duke of Devonshire's Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching 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...
E H Smith Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching 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 ...
Elmgrant Trust
Verified openMatching 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...
England and Wales Cricket Trust
Verified openMatching programme: Interest Free Loan Scheme (Clubs with Junior Section)
The England and Wales Cricket Trust (EWCT), a registered charity (no. 1112540), promotes community participation in cricket as a means of healthy recr...
Football Foundation
Verified openMatching 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...
Fort Augustus & Glenmoriston Community Company
Verified openMatching programme: Student Grant
Fort Augustus & Glenmoriston Community Company, established in 2007 by the local Community Council in the Scottish Highlands, is a community-led organ...
Foundation Scotland
Verified openMatching programme: Baillie Gifford International Fund
Foundation Scotland, Scotland's sole community foundation, drives a mission to empower communities by bridging innovative ideas with resources, foster...
Geoffrey Watling Charity
Verified openMatching programme: General Grant Programme
The Geoffrey Watling Charity embodies entrepreneurial generosity, local pride, and civic friendship, channeling resources to vitalize communities thro...
J G Graves Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching programme: General Grant Programme
The J G Graves Charitable Trust, founded in 1930 by Sheffield businessman and philanthropist John George Graves, is a legacy-driven funder dedicated t...
Janet and Bryan Moore Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching programme: Discretionary Grants
The Janet and Bryan Moore Charitable Trust is dedicated to enhancing and uniting rural communities through grants that preserve heritage and foster co...
Jessie Spencer Trust
Verified openMatching programme: Jessie Spencer Trust Grant Programme
The Jessie Spencer Trust, established in 1962 by Jessie Spencer of Linby, Nottinghamshire, in memory of her husband Arthur and inspired by her family'...
Kelly Family Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching programme: Main Grant Programme
The Kelly Family Charitable Trust, a UK-based family foundation established in 2004 by the Kelly family, is dedicated to strengthening and preserving ...
Lancaster Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: Grant Funding (General Programme)
The Lancaster Foundation, established in 1997 by John and Rosemary Lancaster, is a UK charitable trust driven by Christian values, aiming to express G...
Millennium Awards Trust
Verified openMatching programme: Millennium Awards Trust Scaling Up Award
The Millennium Awards Trust, established in 2002 with an endowment from the UK government's Millennium Commission and National Lottery, catalyses posi...
Milton Keynes Community Foundation Limited
Verified openMatching programme: Community Roots Project
Milton Keynes Community Foundation is an independent place-based funder with a mission to strengthen communities and improve quality of life by channe...
Miss E F Rathbone Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching programme: Merseyside
The Miss E F Rathbone Charitable Trust honors Eleanor Rathbone’s legacy of women’s rights, social equality, and aid to the disadvantaged through grant...
Mobbs Memorial Trust Limited
Verified openMatching programme: General Grant Programme
The Mobbs Memorial Trust Limited, established in 1956 by Sir Noel Mobbs using family endowment funds, is a family-governed grantmaker dedicated to pre...
National Lottery Community Fund
Verified openMatching programme: National Lottery Awards for All England
The National Lottery Community Fund, legally the Big Lottery Fund, is the UK's largest community funder, established in 2004 as a non-departmental pub...
Norfolk Community Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: Dudgeon Community STEM in Schools Fund
Norfolk Community Foundation is an independent local charity dedicated to strengthening Norfolk communities by investing in small grassroots organizat...
Northern Powergrid Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: Energy Resilience Grants Programme
Northern Powergrid Foundation champions energy resilience and social equity for communities ravaged by extreme weather, with a mission rooted in preve...
Nova Wakefield District Limited
Verified openMatching programme: Community Tree Planting Programme
Nova Wakefield District Limited is the local infrastructure charity empowering Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisations across ...
P H Holt Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: Main Grant Programme
The P H Holt Foundation is a legacy-driven grantmaker rooted in over a century of philanthropy aimed at improving everyday life for Merseyside residen...
Point North Community Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: SWEF Business Grant
Point North Community Foundation, formerly County Durham Community Foundation and established in 1995 by Sir Paul Nicholson and David Grant, is an acc...
Quartet Community Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: Express Grant Programme
Quartet Community Foundation harnesses local philanthropy to tackle entrenched inequalities, promote inclusion, and build resilient communities throug...
Rees Jeffreys Road Fund
Verified openMatching programme: Project Grants
The Rees Jeffreys Road Fund, established in 1950 by pioneering transport campaigner William Rees Jeffreys, is a UK charity dedicated to enhancing the ...
Rural Payments Agency
Verified openMatching programme: Animal Health and Welfare reviews
The Rural Payments Agency (RPA), an executive agency of the UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) established in 2001, serves as...
Social Investment Business Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: Reach Fund
The Social Investment Business Foundation, originally launched as the Adventure Capital Fund in 2002 by social sector partners and UK Government backi...
South Yorkshire Community Foundation Limited
Verified openMatching programme: Small Grants Programme
South Yorkshire Community Foundation Limited (SYCF), established in 1986, is an independent charitable funder and the region's largest grant maker, di...
Two Ridings Community Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: Small Grants Fund
Two Ridings Community Foundation, established in 2000 by former Chief Constable David Kenworthy, inspires local giving and channels philanthropic inve...
W F Southall Trust
Verified openMatching programme: W F Southall Trust Main Grant Programme
The W F Southall Trust, established in 1937 by Wilfred Francis Southall, is a Quaker-based family grant-making trust dedicated to advancing Quaker val...
Whitehead Monckton Charitable Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: Whitehead Monckton Charitable Foundation Main Grant Programme
The Whitehead Monckton Charitable Foundation, established in 2010 by Whitehead Monckton Solicitors, is a Kent-focused grant-maker dedicated to support...
Wight Aid Foundation
Verified openMatching programme: WightAID Grant Programme
The WightAID Foundation, established in April 2016, is a grant-making charity dedicated to enhancing the Isle of Wight community by funding vital serv...
William Adlington Cadbury Charitable Trust
Verified openMatching programme: United Kingdom (The Religious Society of Friends)
The William Adlington Cadbury Charitable Trust, established in 1923 by Quaker philanthropist William Cadbury—former Lord Mayor of Birmingham—advances ...
Wixamtree Trust
Verified openMatching programme: Main Grant Programme
The Wixamtree Trust, an independent grant-making charity established in 1962 by Sir Humphrey Whitbread, focuses on enhancing the wellbeing and develop...
583 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.
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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
Describe Your Charity
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