Smallwood Trust
Could Smallwood Trust fund your project? Check fit free. Draft if yes — or shortlist better matches.
- Typical grants
- £15,000 – £60,000
- Where they fund
- stoke-on-trent, liverpool/merseyside, middlesbrough/teesside, staffordshire, tees_valley, hackney, newham, birmingham, bristol, kingston_upon_hull, liverpool, manchester, middlesbrough, newcastle, west_yorkshire_(bradford_and_leeds), england
- Applications
- Accepted
- How to apply
- Two-stage application
Works for Registered charities, CIOs, CICs and community groups.
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smallwoodtrust.org.ukAbout Smallwood Trust
Smallwood Trust is a specialist UK funder focused on tackling women's poverty and building financial resilience. Established in 1886, it takes a participatory, relational approach, devolving decision-making to communities. The Trust prioritises organisations led by and supporting women facing multiple disadvantages, including racial inequality, disability, migration status, and caring responsibilities. Its mission is to enable women's financial resilience by addressing the root causes and consequences of gendered poverty. Smallwood acts as both a funder and sector convener, committed to power-sharing and flexible funding that strengthens the women's sector across England.
What Smallwood Trust funds
Smallwood Trust supports causes including poverty and hardship, mental health, domestic abuse, housing, support for refugees and migrants, and disability. They fund core costs, salaries, project delivery, training, equipment, and emergency costs. Their work spans immediate relief and longer-term routes out of destitution, with programmes targeting areas such as Hackney, Newham, Stoke-on-Trent, Liverpool, Middlesbrough, Birmingham, Bristol, Hull, Manchester, Newcastle, West Yorkshire, London, Leicester, Nottingham, Coventry, and Staffordshire. The Trust specifically prioritises women experiencing racial inequality, disabled women, women with No Recourse to Public Funds, sole parents of children under 18, and LGBTQ+ communities facing financial insecurity.
Who can apply
Smallwood Trust funds registered charities, charitable incorporated organisations, community interest companies, social enterprises, community groups, trusts, community benefit societies, and unincorporated associations. They do not fund individuals or for-profit organisations. Beneficiaries must be women, with priority given to those experiencing multiple disadvantages such as racial inequality, disability, migration status, and caring responsibilities. Applications are welcome from organisations led by and supporting women, particularly those addressing gendered poverty in England's disadvantaged urban areas. There is no faith restriction.
What Smallwood Trust doesn't fund
Smallwood Trust does not fund capital works, for-profit organisations, individuals, political activities, or the promotion of religious beliefs. They also exclude work with women under 18, payments influencing government, expenses reimbursed by other sources, and gifts to individuals beyond promotional items. The Trust does not support projects that petition for additional funding or reclaimable VAT.
How they like to fund
Smallwood Trust offers multi-year grants, typically supporting core costs, salaries, project delivery, training, and equipment. They welcome unsolicited applications and do not require match funding. Their funding style is flexible and relational, with a focus on power-sharing and devolving decision-making to communities. Programmes vary by geography and applicant type, reflecting their participatory approach.
How much does Smallwood Trust give?
Smallwood Trust runs 4 grant programmes. Every figure below is sourced from their published guidance.
Last verified 8 August 2026 · 74 sourced facts
- Online application form
- Multi-year funding
- Two-stage process
- Multi-year funding
- Two-stage process
- Multi-year funding
- Two-stage process
- Multi-year funding
Those are the published figures. What your charity could realistically get — and whether you'd clear their rules on income, location and legal structure — is what the free fit check answers.
What Smallwood Trust funds — and what they won't
Priority on supporting organisations/groups who help women experiencing gendered poverty from Asylum/refugee and migrant backgrounds, with additional layers of oppression: No Recourse to Public Funds, Economic abuse, Physical and mental abuse, LGBTQI+, Caring responsibilities, Disability. In Hackney: focus on Single Women from priority backgrounds around HOUSING and MENTAL HEALTH. In Newham: focus on women from priority backgrounds around ADVICE/SUPPORT SERVICES and ROUTES OUT OF DESTITUTION.
The full exclusions list (13)
- For-profit organisations
- Individuals
- Work overseas
- Party political
- Promotion of religious beliefs
- Purchase of buildings/capital costs
- Work with women under 18
- Payments that support lobbying or activity intended to influence or attempt to influence Parliament, Government or political parties
- Using grant funding to petition for additional funding
- Input VAT reclaimable by Grant Recipient from HMRC
- Payments reimbursed or to be reimbursed by other public or private sector grants
- Contributions in kind
- Gifts to individuals other than promotional items with a value of no more than £25 a year to any one individual
Good to know
How to apply to Smallwood Trust
Smallwood Trust takes applications via two-stage application.
- Published programme route: online application form.
- Check whether your charity is in scope before you spend time on a full bid.
What Smallwood Trust's application asks
We hold the 4 questions from Smallwood Trust's application form, word for word — so you know exactly what you're signing up to answer.
“Application form (details not provided in sources)”
“Expression of Interest Form (online or Word document version)”
2 more questions from their form, plus answers drafted from your charity's real data if you decide to apply.
How it works
- 1Describe your project. Once — used for this funder and others.
- 2See if this could be a fit. Honest check on cause, place, size, and rules.
- 3Draft if yes. From your real data — or move on if not.
See if Smallwood Trust could be a fit. Draft if yes.
Frequently asked questions
How much funding does Smallwood Trust provide?
Smallwood Trust runs 4 grant programmes — Community Grant Partnership Programme: Up to £75,000 · Local Resilience Fund (Uplift Fund): £20,000 – £40,000 · Women's Sector Resilience Fund Phase 2: Up to £500,000 · Women's Urgent Support Fund Round 2: £15,000 – £60,000.
Where does Smallwood Trust fund charities?
Smallwood Trust funds charities operating in stoke-on-trent, liverpool/merseyside, middlesbrough/teesside, staffordshire, tees_valley, hackney, newham, birmingham, bristol, kingston_upon_hull, liverpool, manchester, middlesbrough, newcastle, west_yorkshire_(bradford_and_leeds), england.
Does Smallwood Trust accept unsolicited applications?
Smallwood Trust accepts unsolicited applications from eligible organisations. Current programme status is on this page — do not assume a round is open.
What does Smallwood Trust not fund?
Their published exclusions include: For-profit organisations; Individuals; Work overseas; Party political; Promotion of religious beliefs. The full exclusions list is further up this page.
How do I apply for funding from Smallwood Trust?
Smallwood Trust takes applications via two-stage application. Published programme route: online application form.
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Could Smallwood Trust be a fit?
Check free. Draft if yes, or shortlist better matches.