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
39 of 704 match your filtersChecked against verified programme data for 158 of 704 funders. 546 not yet verified are listed below; 119 that don't fit were excluded.
Access - The Foundation for Social Investment
Matching programme: Local Access
Access – The Foundation for Social Investment drives systemic transformation in the social investment market, empowering charities and social enterpri...
Active Essex Foundation
Matching programme: Sport and Youth Crime Prevention programme (SYCP)
Active Essex Foundation is an independent charity established in 2016 to tackle health and social inequalities in Essex, Southend, and Thurrock throug...
Ballinger Charitable Trust
Matching programme: Project / Capital Grant
The Ballinger Charitable Trust, founded in 1994 by the Ballinger family with deep personal ties to North East England, supports UK-registered charitie...
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...
City Health Care Partnership Foundation
Matching programme: Small Grants
City Health Care Partnership Foundation, established in 2013 by City Health Care Partnership CIC, is a grant-making charity dedicated to promoting hea...
Civic Power Fund
Matching programme: Community Action Fund
The Civic Power Fund, launched in 2022 as the UK's first pooled donor fund for grassroots community organising, unites progressive trusts like Unbound...
Co-Operative Community Investment Foundation
Matching programme: Carbon Innovation Fund
The Co-operative Community Investment Foundation, known as the Co-op Foundation, is the charitable arm of the Co-operative Group, established in 2002 ...
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...
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,...
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, ...
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...
Dorset Community Foundation
Matching programme: BCP Crisis and Resilience Fund
Dorset Community Foundation is an independent grantmaker dedicated to improving lives and fostering thriving, united communities across Dorset by chan...
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...
Eric Wright Charitable Trust
Matching programme: Volunteers Expenses Fund 2024
The Eric Wright Charitable Trust embodies a founding vision of responsible business stewardship channeling construction industry profits into perpetua...
Esmée Fairbairn Foundation
Matching programme: Grants
The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, established in 1961 by Ian Fairbairn in memory of his wife, is one of the UK's largest independent funders, dedicated ...
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...
Football Foundation
Matching programme: Grass Pitch Creation Grant
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...
Friends Provident Charitable Foundation
Matching programme: Shifting Cultural Perceptions
Friends Provident Charitable Foundation, an independent UK grant-making charity established in 2004 with a £33 million endowment from Friends Providen...
Heathrow Community Trust
Matching programme: Communities Together Small
Heathrow Community Trust (HCT), established in 1996 as an independent grant-making charity, supports and enhances quality of life for communities arou...
Herefordshire Community Foundation
Matching programme: Community Chest Programme
Herefordshire Community Foundation (HCF), established in June 2002, is an independent grant-making charity dedicated to promoting charitable purposes ...
Hey Smile Foundation
Matching programme: Green Social Prescribing Programme
HEY Smile Foundation, founded in 2008 by Jim Dick OBE, is a Yorkshire-based infrastructure charity dedicated to strengthening the voluntary sector in ...
Home Office
Matching programme: Community Engagement Fund 2025/26
The Home Office, the United Kingdom's interior ministry established in 1782, serves as the lead government department for public safety, national secu...
Isle of Wight Foundation
Matching programme: Isle of Wight Foundation Grant
The Isle of Wight Foundation, established in 2014 by a consortium of private sector companies including Island Roads, Meridiam, and Vinci Concessions,...
Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust
Matching programme: Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust Grants
The Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust, founded in 1904 by Quaker philanthropist Joseph Rowntree, advances social justice through bold interventions in demo...
Locality (UK)
Matching programme: Cost of living grants
Locality is a national network and registered UK charity founded in 1994 through the merger of two leading community support bodies, dedicated to empo...
Matthew Good Foundation
Matching programme: Grants for Good
The Matthew Good Foundation, established in 2011 by Tim and Matthew Good of the John Good Group, honours Matthew’s legacy by amplifying small charitie...
National Lottery Heritage Fund
Matching programme: National Lottery Grants for Heritage £250,000–£5 million
The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the UK's largest dedicated heritage funder established in 1994 (with roots in the 1980 National Heritage Memorial ...
Northern Powergrid Foundation
Matching 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...
Partnership Foundation
Matching programme: Community Projects Fund
The Partnership Foundation is an urban regeneration charity founded to combat deprivation and neglect by enhancing social and economic well-being for ...
Peter Sowerby Foundation
Matching programme: Good Causes Fund
The Peter Sowerby Foundation, established in 2011 by Dr Peter Sowerby—a rural North Yorkshire GP and co-founder of EMIS—with a substantial endowment, ...
Point North Community Foundation
Matching programme: Northern Cancer Alliance Living with and Beyond Cancer Fund
Point North Community Foundation, formerly County Durham Community Foundation and established in 1995 by Sir Paul Nicholson and David Grant, is an acc...
Real Farming Trust
Matching programme: LEAP (Loans for Enlightened Agriculture Programme)
The Real Farming Trust, a UK charity established in 2009 by Colin Tudge and Ruth West from the Oxford Real Farming Conference, drives the agroecologic...
Salford Community & Voluntary Services
Matching programme: Health and Wellbeing Fund
Salford Community & Voluntary Services (Salford CVS), established in 1919 as part of post-WWI social service efforts and independent since 1973, serve...
Sheffield Town Trust
Matching programme: One-Off Project Grants
Sheffield Town Trust, founded in 1297 by Thomas de Furnival, is one of the UK's oldest charities and a pioneering civic trust originally created to gr...
Sir James Knott Trust
Matching programme: Rolling Grants Programme
The Sir James Knott Trust, established in 1924 by Tyneside shipowner Sir James Knott following the loss of his sons in World War I, is a cornerstone p...
South Yorkshire Community Foundation Limited
Matching programme: South Yorkshire Green Social Prescribing Grants Programme
South Yorkshire Community Foundation Limited (SYCF), established in 1986, is an independent charitable funder and the region's largest grant maker, di...
Sovereign Housing Association Limited
Matching programme: Thriving Communities Fund – Strengthening Place
Sovereign Network Group (SNG), evolved from Sovereign Housing Association, drives a mission to deliver affordable homes as the foundation for better l...
Summerfield Charitable Trust
Matching programme: General Grant Programme
Summerfield Charitable Trust advances community resilience, inclusion, creativity, environmental stewardship, and support for disadvantaged population...
Two Ridings Community Foundation
Matching programme: Small Grants Fund
Two Ridings Community Foundation, established in 2000 by former Chief Constable David Kenworthy, inspires local giving and channels philanthropic inve...
546 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
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