Children & Young People1506+ Funders

Children & Young People Grants & Funding

There are 1506 UK funders offering grants for children & young people charities, with typical awards from £100 to £6,000,000.

The UK has a strong tradition of philanthropic support for children and young people, with hundreds of trusts and foundations dedicated to improving outcomes for under-25s. Funding priorities range from early years education and child poverty relief to youth employment programmes and mental health support for teenagers. Many funders in this space prioritise preventative work — early intervention projects that stop problems before they escalate. Others focus on specific demographics such as looked-after children, young carers, or those not in education, employment, or training (NEET). Geographic focus varies widely: some funders operate nationally while others target specific local authority areas or regions with high deprivation indices. Grant sizes span from small awards under £5,000 for grassroots youth clubs to six-figure multi-year grants for established charities running evidence-based programmes. The sector has seen increased funding since 2023, particularly for digital inclusion and youth mental health initiatives.

Quick Stats

Total Funders
1506
Grant Range
£100 - £6,000,000
Open to Applications
44%

Children & Young People Funders

75 of 1506 match your filters

Checked against verified programme data for 342 of 1506 funders. 1164 not yet verified are listed below; 267 that don't fit were excluded.

Bank of Scotland Foundation

Matching programme: Enable

Bank of Scotland Foundation is an independent charitable foundation with a mission to combat persistent social exclusion, disadvantage, and deprivatio...

Grant Range
Contact funder

Barbara Ward Children's Foundation

Matching programme: Barbara Ward Children's Foundation Grants

The Barbara Ward Children's Foundation, established in December 2001 by Barbara Irene Ward, is a UK-registered grant-making charity dedicated to trans...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £15,000

Bedfordshire and Luton Community Foundation

Matching programme: London Luton Airport Operations Ltd (LLAOL) Community Trust Fund

Bedfordshire and Luton Community Foundation (BLCF), established in 1999 and registered as a charity in 2001 by founders Geoffrey Farr MBE DL, Sir Samu...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £10,000

BGF Foundation

Matching programme: Partnership Grants

The BGF Foundation is an independent charitable foundation dedicated to transforming the lives of disadvantaged young people through patient, flexible...

Grant Range
£100,000 - £100,000

Blagrave Trust

Matching programme: Regional Programme

The Blagrave Trust is an independent endowed foundation established in 1978 under the wills of Herbert and Peter Blagrave, restructured as a Charitabl...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £50,000

Buckinghamshire Community Foundation

Matching programme: Heart of Bucks General Fund

Buckinghamshire Community Foundation, operating as Heart of Bucks, serves as a catalyst for social change by connecting philanthropy to local causes, ...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £10,000

Cardiff YMCA (1910) Trust

Matching programme: Tier 2 – Larger grants scheme

Cardiff YMCA (1910) Trust, established in 1910 to support Cardiff YMCA's charitable work in South Wales, is a grant-making trust dedicated to fosterin...

Grant Range
£250 - £5,000

Charterhouse-in-Southwark

Matching programme: Multi-Year Grant Programme

Charterhouse-in-Southwark is an independent endowed grant-making trust established in 1885, rooted in the historic Charterhouse foundation in Clerkenw...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £10,000

City Bridge Foundation

Matching programme: Access to Justice Programme 2025/6 Round One

City Bridge Foundation, London’s largest independent charitable funder and historic owner of five iconic Thames bridges (Tower, London, Southwark, Mil...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £500,000

Co-Operative Community Investment Foundation

Matching programme: Community spaces - interest-free loans (UK wide)

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 North East

Matching programme: Newcastle Culture Investment Fund

Community Foundation North East, established in 1988 by local business and civic leaders in North East England, serves as the UK's largest community f...

Grant Range
Up to £25,000

David Riddell Memorial CIO

Matching programme: Grant Programme

The David Riddell Memorial CIO, established in 2021 by Nicole Guest to honour her late husband David Riddell—an investment banker who died by suicide ...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £25,000

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

Educational Opportunity Foundation

Matching programme: Main Fund - International Projects

The Educational Opportunity Foundation, tracing origins to 1808, exists to enhance life chances worldwide through transformative educational opportuni...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £90,000

Ernest Cook Trust

Matching programme: Outdoor Learning Leader Grant

The Ernest Cook Trust, founded in 1952 by Ernest Cook—grandson of travel pioneer Thomas Cook—is a leading UK educational charity with over 9,000 hecta...

Grant Range
£500 - £20,000

Ernest Kleinwort Charitable Trust

Matching programme: Medium Grant

The Ernest Kleinwort Charitable Trust (EKCT), established in 1963 by Ernest and Joan Kleinwort, is a family-led grant-making foundation dedicated to m...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £25,000

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 ...

Grant Range
From £30,000

Forever Manchester

Matching programme: Comic Relief and Sainsbury's Holiday Activity and Food Programme

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

Grant Range
£500 - £1,500

Games Aid

Matching programme: Annual Charity Support Programme

Games Aid is a UK-based charity (registered number 1081706), established in 2008 from the Entertainment Software Charity, dedicated to channeling the ...

Grant Range
£30,000 - £30,000

Garfield Weston Foundation

Matching programme: Regular Grant

The Garfield Weston Foundation, family-founded in 1958, drives its mission to strengthen society through enduring philanthropic support for charities ...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £30,000

Geoffrey Watling Charity

Matching programme: General Grant Programme

The Geoffrey Watling Charity embodies entrepreneurial generosity, local pride, and civic friendship, channeling resources to vitalize communities thro...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £30,000

Goldsmiths' Company Charity

Matching programme: Open Grants Fund

The Goldsmiths' Company Charity, rooted in the historic Goldsmiths’ Company with charitable origins dating to 1334 and formal registration in the late...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £50,000

Haberdashers' Foundation

Matching programme: Resilience Fund

The Haberdashers' Foundation embodies centuries-old stewardship and social responsibility, empowering young people from all backgrounds to realize the...

Grant Range
£3,000 - £5,000

Henry Smith Charity

Matching programme: Shout! Fund

The Henry Smith Foundation, formerly Henry Smith Charity and one of the UK's oldest independent grant-makers since 1628, channels the legacy of founde...

Grant Range
£500 - £250,000

Herefordshire Community Foundation

Matching programme: Main Grant Programme

Herefordshire Community Foundation (HCF), established in June 2002, is an independent grant-making charity dedicated to promoting charitable purposes ...

Grant Range
£3,000 - £5,000

Hertfordshire Community Foundation

Matching programme: HCF Foundation Grants

Hertfordshire Community Foundation is an independent charity dedicated to channeling local philanthropy into grassroots solutions that alleviate depri...

Grant Range
£240 - £10,000

Impetus - The Private Equity Foundation

Matching programme: Engage Grant Round 2024

Impetus – The Private Equity Foundation champions equality and high ambition for young people from socio-economically deprived backgrounds, believing ...

Grant Range
£30,000 - £100,000

James Knott Family Foundation

Matching programme: Main Grants Programme

The James Knott Family Foundation, known as the Sir James Knott Trust, was established in 1924 by Tyneside shipowner Sir James Knott to honor his sons...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £10,000

John Lyon's Charity

Matching programme: Open Programme (Main Grants Fund)

John Lyon's Charity, rooted in a 1572 Royal Charter by Harrow School founder John Lyon, advances educational and social opportunities for children and...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £35,000

Kensington and Chelsea Foundation

Matching programme: Earls Court Community Fund

The Kensington and Chelsea Foundation, established in 2008 as an independent place-based charity, addresses profound hardship, exclusion, and inequali...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £25,000

Kristina Martin Charitable Trust

Matching programme: Annual Grant Round

The Kristina Martin Charitable Trust champions mental well-being and tackles pressing mental health challenges through compassionate, hope-driven phil...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £50,000

Lake House Charitable Foundation

Matching programme: Lake House Charitable Foundation grants

The Lake House Charitable Foundation, an independent UK grant-making charity established in 2008, is dedicated to alleviating severe disadvantages fac...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £10,000

Landaid Charitable Trust Limited

Matching programme: LandAid Young Futures Fund

LandAid Charitable Trust Limited, founded in 1986 as the UK property industry's dedicated charity, unites the sector's financial resources and profess...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £100,000

Legal Education Foundation

Matching programme: Emerging Justice fund

The Legal Education Foundation (LEF), established in 2013 from the sale of the College of Law, is an independent UK grantmaker with roots in 19th-cent...

Grant Range
£20,000 - £500,000

Lewin Trust

Matching programme: The Lewin Trust Grant Programme

The Lewin Trust, an independent grant-making charity established in 2021 and registered with the Charity Commission in 2022 (no. 1197855), channels ph...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £50,000

Lincolnshire Community Foundation CIO

Matching programme: Michael Cornish Core Grants Programme

Lincolnshire Community Foundation CIO, established in 2002, is an independent charity dedicated to tackling social inequalities and fostering thriving...

Grant Range
£500 - £10,000

London Community Foundation

Matching programme: Wimbledon Foundation Community Fund

London Community Foundation champions a fairer London by investing in small, local charities and grassroots groups tackling deep inequalities, wealth ...

Grant Range
£500 - £25,000

Maudsley Charity

Matching programme: Living Well with Psychosis Community Fund

Maudsley Charity, the UK’s largest specialist mental health funder, traces its roots to Bethlem Royal Hospital (1247) and Maudsley Hospital (1923), pa...

Grant Range
£200 - £1,000,000

Mercers Charitable Foundation

Matching programme: Church & Communities

The Mercers’ Charitable Foundation, established in 1983 as the principal grant-making trust of The Mercers’ Company—London’s premier livery company fo...

Grant Range
£25,000 - £150,000

Merchant Taylors' Foundation

Matching programme: Merchant Taylors' CCI (Merchant Taylors' Consolidated Charities for the Infirm) – Main Grants

The Merchant Taylors' Foundation, the principal charitable arm of one of the Great Twelve Livery Companies of the City of London, draws on centuries o...

Grant Range
£500 - £5,000

Merriman Charitable Foundation

Matching programme: Merriman Charitable Foundation grants

The Merriman Charitable Foundation is a grant-making charity with a mission to enable positive change through flexible funding for education, health, ...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £5,000

Milton Keynes Community Foundation Limited

Matching programme: Oak Grants

Milton Keynes Community Foundation is an independent place-based funder with a mission to strengthen communities and improve quality of life by channe...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £15,000

Mohn Westlake Foundation

Matching programme: The Mohn Westlake Arts Engagement Fund

The Mohn Westlake Foundation is a family charitable trust driven by dual missions: enhancing lives of children and young people through expanded acces...

Grant Range
£100,000 - £1,000,000

Mrs Smith and Mount Trust

Matching programme: The Mount Fund – Small Grants Programme

The Mrs Smith & Mount Trust, formed in 1992 by amalgamating The Mrs Smith Fund and The Mount Trust, is a UK grant-maker dedicated to empowering disadv...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £25,000

Neighbourly Foundation

Matching programme: Neighbourly Foundation Grant Programme

Neighbourly Foundation, a UK-registered charity (1189514) established in March 2020 as the charitable arm of Neighbourly Limited, emerged in response ...

Grant Range
£400 - £1,500

P H Holt Foundation

Matching 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...

Grant Range
£3,000 - £10,000

Peter Minet Trust

Matching programme: Open Grants Fund

Peter Minet Trust strengthens urban communities in deprived South London areas by empowering small, embedded local charities addressing severe, multip...

Grant Range
£25,000 - £30,000

Postcode Innovation Trust

Matching programme: Dream Fund

Postcode Innovation Trust, established in 2016, is an independent funder powered by proceeds from its society lottery linked to People’s Postcode Lott...

Grant Range
£100,000 - £1,250,000

Prudence Trust

Matching programme: Funding Priorities

The Prudence Trust is an independent grant-making foundation with a core mission to advance the mental health of young people across the UK through ev...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £200,000

Showing 50 of 75 matching funders

1164 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 Children & Young People Funders

When applying for youth-focused grants, demonstrate robust safeguarding policies and evidence that all staff and volunteers hold current DBS checks. Funders expect to see that young people have a genuine voice in project design and delivery — describe how you involve youth in decision-making through advisory panels, co-production workshops, or peer-led activities. Present measurable outcomes tied to recognised frameworks: NEET reduction figures, educational attainment improvements, wellbeing score changes, or progression into employment and training. Make your delivery model age-appropriate, showing that activities and communication methods are tailored to the specific age range you serve rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach. Include clear transition planning that explains what happens when participants age out of your programme — how you ensure lasting impact and connect young people to ongoing support. If your work targets specific vulnerable groups such as looked-after children or young carers, reference the evidence base for your approach and any partnerships with statutory services. Strong applications in this space balance ambitious vision with practical, evidence-informed delivery.

Frequently Asked Questions about Children & Young People Grants

What grants are available for children & young people charities in the UK?

There are 1506+ UK funders offering grants for children & young people 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 children & young people organisations get?

Grant amounts for children & young people 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 children & young people grants?

Start by identifying funders whose priorities align with your children & young people work. Fundermatcher matches your charity's profile against 1506+ funders to find the best fit. Our AI assistant can then help you draft compelling grant applications.

How to Find the Right Children & Young People 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 1506 children & young people 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 1506 Funders Are Right for You?

Browsing 1506 funders manually takes hours. Describe your charity once and get your top matches ranked by compatibility — in seconds.

  • Personalised match scores
  • Eligibility checks
  • AI grant writer