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New Charities96+ Funders

Grants for New Charities in the UK

There are 96 UK funders offering grants for new charities, with typical awards from £250 to £500,000.

Starting a new charity is exciting but finding funding without an established track record is one of the biggest challenges new organisations face. Many funders require a minimum operating history — often two or three years — before they will consider an application. However, a growing number of grant-makers recognise the value of supporting new charities at their earliest stages. Several funders specifically target start-up and newly established organisations: the National Lottery Community Fund's Awards for All programme has no minimum age requirement, and many community foundations welcome applications from new groups. Some funders such as UnLtd support social entrepreneurs and new charitable ventures. Local infrastructure organisations like councils for voluntary service (CVS) often have small grants specifically designed for new community groups. The key for new charities is to demonstrate credibility despite a short track record — strong governance, a clear understanding of the need you address, and evidence that your approach works (even from pilot activities or the experience of your founders). Partnering with an established charity can also help new organisations access funding that might otherwise be unavailable.

Quick Stats

Total Funders
96
Grant Range
£250 - £500,000
Open to Applications
40%

Funders for New Charities

96 funders found

Adrian Swire Charitable Trust

Open

The Adrian Swire Charitable Trust embodies a family-rooted philanthropic legacy dedicated to advancing charitable purposes across health, education, a...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £25,000

Agnes Hunter Trust SCIO

Open

Agnes Hunter Trust SCIO, an independent Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation founded in 1954 from the legacy of Miss Agnes H Hunter and conve...

Grant Range
£3,000 - £10,000

Alan Edward Higgs Charity

Open

The Alan Edward Higgs Charity embodies a mission to relieve poverty and foster economic and community development for disadvantaged children, young pe...

Grant Range
From £5,000

Amabrill Ltd

Amabrill Ltd is a private charitable company limited by guarantee, incorporated in 1999 and established as a grant-maker in 2000, dedicated to advanci...

Grant Range
£50,000 - £500,000

Astor Foundation

The Astor Foundation, a UK-based grant-making charity established in 1964 by the Astor family, advances medical research in its broadest sense while s...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £5,000

B E Perl Charitable Trust

The B E Perl Charitable Trust, established in 1981 and chaired since inception by Benjamin Eliezer Perl MBE, is a family-founded charity dedicated to ...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £100,000

Barking and Dagenham Giving

Open

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

Bates Wells Foundation

Open

The Bates Wells Foundation, established in 2015 as an independent UK-registered charitable incorporated organisation by the law firm Bates Wells, hono...

Grant Range
£25,000 - £25,000

C and F Charitable Trust

The C and F Charitable Trust (charity number 274529), established in 1977, is a private grantmaking charity dedicated exclusively to supporting the Or...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £58,000

Caledon Trust

The Caledon Trust is an unincorporated charitable trust established by deed in August 1965 and registered with the Charity Commission (number 244868),...

Grant Range
Contact funder

Cannon Charitable Trust

The Cannon Charitable Trust, registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales as number 1080818 since May 2000, is a family-managed philan...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £100,000

Charity Entrepreneurship

Open

Charity Entrepreneurship is an effective altruism-inspired incubator founded to create high-impact nonprofits by identifying evidence-based interventi...

Grant Range
£100,000 - £200,000

Chasdei Dov Trust

Chasdei Dov Trust, established in 2019 in London, is a trustee-led charitable trust dedicated to advancing the Orthodox Jewish faith and religious edu...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £100,000

Chedva Charitable Trust

The Chedva Charitable Trust is an unincorporated UK charity established in 1989 through a Declaration of Trust and registered with the Charity Commiss...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £100,000

Childs Charitable Trust

Open

Childs Charitable Trust is a UK-based grant-making trust with a clear evangelical mission to fund the promotion and sharing of the Christian gospel do...

Grant Range
Up to £30,000

City Charitable Trust

The City Charitable Trust is a longstanding UK-registered grant-making charity (number 259420) dedicated to advancing public benefit by supporting a b...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £10,000

Combined Theatrical Charities Appeals Council

The Combined Theatrical Charities Appeals Council, known publicly as Acting for Others, is a UK umbrella charity established in 1966 to unite longstan...

Grant Range
Contact funder

Community Foundation for Northern Ireland

Open

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

Cooks Charity

Open

The Cooks Charity, the philanthropic arm of the Worshipful Company of Cooks—a City of London Livery Company with roots in the 12th century—champions e...

Grant Range
£2,500 - £20,000

Coverdale Foundation

The Coverdale Foundation is a private charitable trust registered in England and Wales since 2013 (charity number 1154598), with a core mission to rel...

Grant Range
Contact funder

Croydon Voluntary Action

Open

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

Open

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

Dina Perelman Trust Limited

Dina Perelman Trust Limited is a longstanding private family-led charitable trust established in 1977 as a company limited by guarantee, governed by P...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £100,000

DMF Ellis Charitable Trust

The DMF Ellis Charitable Trust is a UK-based grant-making charity established in 2009 under the will of Doree Mary Fitzgerald Ellis, governed by a sma...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £25,000

Douglas Bader Foundation

Open

The Douglas Bader Foundation embodies the resilience and determination of Sir Douglas Bader, championing the physical, mental, and spiritual welfare o...

Grant Range
£500 - £2,000

Dulwich Estate

The Dulwich Estate is a historic registered charity founded in 1619 by Elizabethan actor and philanthropist Edward Alleyn, rooted in providing educati...

Grant Range
Contact funder

Ellinson Foundation Limited

Ellinson Foundation Limited, incorporated in 1967, is a discreet, family-led grantmaking charity governed by a small board of trustees, with a singula...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £50,000

Elpold Charities Limited

Elpold Charities Limited, a UK-based grantmaker established in 1980 and registered as charity number 1125269, operates as a private company limited by...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £50,000

Ernest Kleinwort Charitable Trust

Open

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

Estate Charity of William Hatcliffe

The Estate Charity of William Hatcliffe is a historic endowed charitable trust founded in the early 17th century by William Hatcliffe, keeper of King ...

Grant Range
£60,000 - £400,000

Findlay Charitable Trust

The Findlay Charitable Trust, established in 1988 and registered in England and Wales, is a discretionary grant-maker dedicated to advancing health an...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £25,000

First Port for Social Entrepreneurs Limited

Open

Firstport for Social Entrepreneurs Limited is Scotland's dedicated development agency empowering individuals to launch start-up social enterprises tac...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £40,000

George Family Foundation

Open

The George Family Foundation, established in 1994 by Penny and Bill George in Minneapolis, Minnesota, advances wholeness in mind, body, spirit, and co...

Grant Range
£50,000 - £200,000

George Henry Collins Charity

Open

The George Henry Collins Charity, established in 1967, is a longstanding UK grant-maker governed by five trustees, with a core mission to relieve illn...

Grant Range
£250 - £500

Goldheart Charity Limited

Goldheart Charity Limited is a grant-making charitable company established on 8 December 2008 and registered with the Charity Commission for England a...

Grant Range
£2,500 - £25,000

Handspark Charitable Trust

Handspark Charitable Trust, established in January 2023 from an unrestricted donation by the John Haynes Discretionary Settlement Trust, is a trustee-...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £25,000

John Coates Charitable Trust

The John Coates Charitable Trust, established in 1969 by John Bernard Maurice Coates, is a family-led grant-making trust inspired by the founder's exp...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £10,000

John Scott Charitable Trust

The John Scott Charitable Trust, established in 2008 as a UK-registered charity under a Declaration of Trust, focuses on advancing education and relie...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £20,000

Joseph and Queenie Gold Charitable Trust

The Joseph and Queenie Gold Charitable Trust, established in 1983, was a grantmaking trust dedicated to advancing general charitable purposes by provi...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £10,000

Kathleen Hannay Memorial Charity

The Kathleen Hannay Memorial Charity, established in 1988 by Reverend Robert Fleming Hannay, is a discreet, trustee-led grant-making trust dedicated t...

Grant Range
£15,000 - £25,000

Kelly Family Charitable Trust

Open

The Kelly Family Charitable Trust, a UK-based family foundation established in 2004 by the Kelly family, is dedicated to strengthening and preserving ...

Grant Range
£1,000 - £5,000

Kidney Research UK

Open

Kidney Research UK, established in 1961 as the National Kidney Research Fund by clinicians and patients, is the UK's largest charity dedicated exclusi...

Grant Range
£10,000 - £250,000

King's Trust

The King's Trust, formerly The Prince's Trust and founded in 1976 by King Charles III (then Prince of Wales), is the UK's leading youth charity with a...

Grant Range
Contact funder

Kip and Alison Bertram Charitable Trust

The Kip and Alison Bertram Charitable Trust, established by deed in 2006 and registered as a UK charity, is a family-governed grant-maker based in Nor...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £20,000

Knowle West Media Centre

Knowle West Media Centre (KWMC) is a charitable arts and community technology centre in South Bristol's Knowle West, founded in 1996 by Carolyn Hassan...

Grant Range
£5,000 - £20,000

Laduma Dhamecha Charitable Trust

The Laduma Dhamecha Charitable Trust, established in 1990 by the Dhamecha family in honour of their mother Laduma, is a family-led grant-making trust ...

Grant Range
Contact funder

Lady Maria Fisher Foundation

The Lady Maria Fisher Foundation, established by trust deed on 1 May 2019, serves as a successor to the Sir John Fisher Foundation, perpetuating the p...

Grant Range
Contact funder

Lancaster Foundation

Open

The Lancaster Foundation, established in 1997 by John and Rosemary Lancaster, is a UK charitable trust driven by Christian values, aiming to express G...

Grant Range
£15,000 - £100,000

Leslie Sell Charitable Trust

Open

The Leslie Sell Charitable Trust, established in 1969 by the late Leslie Sell, is an independent UK funder dedicated to supporting the Scouting and Gu...

Grant Range
£250 - £2,500

Linden Charitable Trust

The Linden Charitable Trust, established in March 1985 as a UK-based grant-making trust, focuses on delivering public benefit through targeted support...

Grant Range
£2,000 - £10,000

Showing 50 of 96 funders for new charities

Tips for New Charities Applying for Grants

New charities need to compensate for a short track record by demonstrating other markers of credibility. Highlight the professional experience and sector knowledge of your founders, trustees, and key staff — funders want to know that capable people are behind the organisation even if the charity itself is new. If you have run pilot activities, volunteered in the field, or delivered similar work through another organisation, present this evidence prominently. Describe your governance structure clearly: who are your trustees, what skills do they bring, and how do they provide oversight? Even basic governance — regular board meetings, financial procedures, safeguarding policies — signals seriousness to funders. Be honest about your stage of development and frame your application as seeking start-up or development support rather than overstating your maturity. Many funders appreciate candour about what you are still building. Start with smaller grants and local funders who are more likely to take a chance on new organisations — build a track record of successful delivery before approaching larger trusts. Consider whether a fiscal sponsorship arrangement (operating under the umbrella of an established charity) could help you access funding while you build your own reputation. Reference published evidence or research that supports your approach to show that your methods are grounded even if your organisation is new.

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Frequently Asked Questions about Grants for New Charities

Can new charities get grant funding in the UK?

Yes. While many funders require a minimum track record of 1-3 years, several programmes specifically support new and start-up charities. The National Lottery Community Fund Awards for All, many community foundations, and local CVS organisations all welcome applications from newly registered charities.

How long does a charity need to exist before applying for grants?

It varies by funder. Some have no minimum age requirement, while others require 1, 2, or 3 years of operating history. Start with funders that have no age requirement and build your track record with smaller grants before approaching larger trusts.

What do new charities need to include in a grant application?

Focus on the experience of your founders and team, evidence that supports your approach (even from other contexts), clear governance structures, realistic budgets, and a defined plan for the funding. Demonstrating community need and your unique understanding of the issue is more important than organisational longevity.

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1

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2

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3

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