Paddington Development Trust

The Trust funds a wide range of community-led activities addressing poverty, employment, youth, family support, elderly care, health, cultural inclusion, and environmental action. Specific areas include poverty relief through food banks and emergency aid, employment training for unemployed young people aged 16-25 and adults facing barriers, and upskilling programmes for BAME communities and marginalised groups. It also supports youth work such as after-school clubs and mentoring, family support services, elderly care including befriending and day services, health and wellbeing interventions like digital inclusion and peer support, cultural inclusion projects uniting diverse faith communities, and environmental action with green infrastructure and sustainability training. All funded work is hyper-local, focused on Paddington and Westminster's most deprived wards.

The Trust funds organisations only, including registered charities and community groups. It prioritises grassroots groups serving BAME families, unemployed young people, isolated older people, and faith-led resident associations. The Trust values lived experience leadership and evidence of place-based impact. Applicants must be rooted in Paddington or Westminster, with a focus on the most deprived wards. The Trust welcomes unsolicited applications from local groups that demonstrate community-led approaches and cross-sector partnerships.

The Trust does not fund non-local or top-down projects, national initiatives without hyper-local ties, or activities that ignore the realities of urban disadvantage. It excludes projects that are not rooted in the Paddington and Westminster area.

The Trust funds through grants and support for community-led projects, partnerships, and capacity building. It welcomes unsolicited applications from local groups. The Trust emphasises community-led outreach, preventative early intervention, and holistic person-centred approaches. It values cross-sector partnerships and resident co-production.