Discover Funding Opportunities

Cost of Living Fund

The Cost of Living Fund is a community grant program led by Social Enterprise Kent and funded through the East Kent Health Care Partnership, NHS Health Inequalities fund. The program enables grassroots organizations and groups to apply for up to £5,000 to fund new activities or extend current activities that tackle issues related to healthy eating. The fund specifically addresses food poverty and diet-related challenges by supporting local, community-based organizations to run projects that tackle food and diet issues in communities across east Kent. Lack of access, knowledge and skills around healthy eating and cooking has significant impact on people's physical and mental health, including detrimental effects on the growth and development of young people. The fund is particularly interested in supporting projects that tackle specific health issues linked with poor diet, such as diabetes or hypertension in particular communities. Strong applications should demonstrate community need, show support from local people, and avoid duplication of existing activities unless there is a strong reason to do so.

Hardship Grants

The National Benevolent Charity's Hardship Grants are aimed at individuals experiencing poverty or hardship in Bristol, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, and Swindon. Grant awards range from £150 to £750 (with an average of £379) and are normally made in the form of e-vouchers, bank transfers, or direct payment to suppliers. The grants support essential needs including white goods, household items, food, clothing, priority debts, bankruptcy costs, training or work tools, and floor coverings. In exceptional circumstances, grants may also cover disability aids, minor home repairs, or rent arrears. Applications can be made by individuals themselves with support from a professional support worker, or by support workers on behalf of clients. The charity processes applications through Lightning Reach portal and aims to respond within 15 working days. Households can receive only one grant in any 12-month period, up to a maximum of three grants in any five-year period.

The Didcot Powerhouse Fund

The Didcot Powerhouse Fund, launched at the end of 2021, invites grant applications from charities and organisations providing support to the wider Didcot community. Grants are offered annually and are themed. The Fund aims to accelerate levelling up in the Didcot area by streamlining corporate and community giving more effectively to support neighbourhoods where additional support is urgently needed. The theme for 2026 is 'Powering a healthy Didcot', which aims to improve physical health, mental health and community resilience in Greater Didcot and the surrounding villages. At least 90% of beneficiaries of any grant from the Fund must live inside the Didcot Garden Town Area of Influence. Over the last four years, £383,000 has been awarded in 70 grants all serving beneficiaries in the Powerhouse area.

Holiday Grants

The Holiday Grants Programme offers one-off grants for schools, youth groups and non-profit organisations to take children aged 13 and under on recreational day trips or short residential trips. The programme helps provide memorable experiences that can have a lasting impact, boosting wellbeing, building confidence, and offering a break from daily pressures for children who face financial hardship, systemic inequity or disability. The foundation prioritises groups supporting disabled children and those with limited access to funds to go on holiday, with 60% of grants in 2025 going to organisations working in the UK's most deprived areas. Trips must be recreational only with no educational or religious aims, and must take place within the UK, Isle of Man or Channel Islands.

Together We Begin

Together We Begin is a funding program from the Henry Smith Foundation that invests in home-based early years support for families. The fund aims to strengthen parenting skills to improve children's outcomes, build confidence and reduce stress in the home, and connect families to their local community. Organizations must provide face-to-face support to families in their homes, have proven experience of working with families facing financial hardship or social isolation who have children aged 0-5 and/or during pregnancy, and deliver work in high-need areas where at least 24.9% of children live in poverty. The work must be rooted in communities, strengths-based, responsive to need, inclusive and accessible, and focused on meaningful, lasting change. This fund is part of the Getting Started funding priority, which supports families to give young children the best possible start in life.