Sir George Martin Trust

The Sir George Martin Trust, an independent charitable foundation established in 1956 by Yorkshire businessman Sir George Martin, focuses on improving the well-being of economically and socially disadvantaged people in West Yorkshire. Governed by a sole corporate trustee company with a board setting strategic direction, it emphasises practical support for grassroots organisations and churches deeply embedded in local communities. Its approachable, responsive ethos—aligned with IVAR’s Open & Trusting Grant-making commitments—prioritises empowering small groups delivering tangible improvements, often with hands-on capacity-building advice alongside funding.

The Trust funds wide-ranging interventions tackling poverty, isolation, mental health, disability, homelessness, youth disadvantage, food insecurity, and community cohesion. Supported activities benefit children and young people, older people, disabled individuals, refugees, domestic abuse survivors, carers, and families in hardship—such as skateboarding programmes for youth mental health (e.g., LS-TEN), food banks, youth clubs, domestic violence services, and homelessness schemes. Grants cover project costs, core running expenses, capital items, outreach, and occasionally multi-year support for sustainability.

Eligible applicants are UK-registered charities, CIOs, and churches based in West Yorkshire (Leeds, Bradford, Wakefield, Calderdale, Kirklees), with annual income under £1 million and a local focus; national charities or those with external head offices are ineligible, as are unregistered groups (except churches), CICs, or community benefit societies. Typical grants range from £2,000–£3,000 (£500–£5,000 overall), awarded as flexible one-off payments. Applications are rolling via SmartyGrants: submit a brief Expression of Interest (EoI) first, with full applications invited after discussion; trustees meet quarterly (February, June, October), with decisions in up to three months and reports required post-grant. Repeat funding requires a 12-month wait, limited to three consecutive years. Distinguished by close grantee relationships and regional embedding, it has granted over £2.4 million to 800+ organisations in the past decade.