Making Local Life Better Fund

The Making Local Life Better Fund is made up of money from individual and corporate donors and seeks to prioritise smaller grassroots community, voluntary and charitable groups improving the lives of local people, particularly those who are vulnerable, under-represented or disadvantaged. The fund supports a wide range of grant themes including arts, culture and heritage; education, training and employment; environment, wildlife and biodiversity; equity, inclusion and fairness; health (physical and mental) including social isolation, addiction issues and caring responsibilities; poverty and disadvantage including homelessness, housing, food and fuel poverty, and debt advice; sport and recreation; and stronger communities and cohesion including refugee support. The fund prioritises organisations making a difference to local communities that are locally run and managed, with particular focus on organisations that support inclusion by proactively addressing barriers to participation, organisations with a turnover of less than £1,000,000, and organisations with free reserves between 3 and 6 months core operating costs. This is a rolling grant programme with no deadlines, meeting quarterly throughout the year to assess applications and award grants to between 20 and 25 organisations in each quarter.