Independent Press Regulation Trust

The Independent Press Regulation Trust (IPRT), a UK-registered charity established in 2015, was created in response to the Leveson Inquiry following the phone hacking scandal. Its core mission is to promote high ethical standards and best practices in journalism, emphasizing legal compliance, privacy protection, and press freedom. Operating independently of government, political parties, and commercial interests, IPRT provides essential financial support for genuinely independent press regulators in the public interest, as outlined in the Royal Charter on Self-Regulation of the Press. Its distinctive approach is a laser-focused, structural intervention: sustaining the UK's only recognized regulator, Impress, which oversees hundreds of independent, local, and specialist news publishers committed to transparency and accountability, excluding major national media groups.

IPRT exclusively funds the core operations and expansion of recognized independent press regulators like Impress, subsidizing membership and arbitration fees for small publishers to ensure equitable access to ethical regulation. Beneficiaries include the UK public through a more trustworthy press sector and aligned independent media organizations, with no support for general charitable causes, projects, or communities outside this narrow remit.

Eligible entities must be UK-based organizations capable of national-scale regulatory work, such as medium-sized regulators; grassroots groups or non-media charities are ineligible. Funding is invite-only with no unsolicited applications, open processes, or deadlines—decisions are made strategically by trustees and reviewed annually. Typical grants range from £1,000,000 to £1,340,000 in multi-year core support to Impress.

Unlike broader media funders, IPRT's singular, mission-led focus on press regulation reform sets it apart, rejecting project grants, capacity building, or unrestricted funding to prioritize systemic journalistic improvement across the UK.