Where do we start?

There are thousands of organisations across the UK that provide funding for projects which benefit communities. These organisations – which range from small charitable trusts to large grant-making bodies distributing millions each year – are generally completely independent of each other, meaning that their eligibility criteria, and the kinds of projects they will fund, are completely unique. For this reason, looking for a funder for a new project from scratch can feel daunting, but don’t worry – there are good sources of help out there.

If you are just looking for a one-off grant to fund a specific project, you will probably be able to identify a suitable prospective funder using the tools below and some basic internet research. If you are a larger organisation, potentially looking to apply for several grants each year for different projects, it is worth considering subscribing to a database of funders such as My Funding Central or Funds Online. The advantage to these databases is that you can filter your specific requirements based on the type of project and amount needed to identify the most appropriate funder.

Are we eligible?

Please remember that as well as the project itself, most funders will also look at the applicant organisation. Some will only fund those who have registered charitable status, but many will also consider organisations who are not-for-profit companies or have other governance structures, so long as they can demonstrate community impact.

Who can help?

There are some other organisations who will also be able to help you. Traditionally, a great source of support has always been a local Council for Voluntary Service (CVS). In recent years, these organisations have come under financial pressure, and sadly many have closed or merged – however most areas are still covered by some form of local infrastructure organisation that supports charities, community groups, and volunteers. These may be called something other than CVS, such ‘Voluntary Action’, ‘Community Action’, etc, but they will have extensive knowledge of both potential funders, and other local charities or voluntary organisations who might be able to advise and/or collaborate on your project. You can find your local infrastructure organisation on the NAVCA website.

Another excellent source of both advice and funding is your local Community Foundation. These organisations exist to promote local philanthropy, and will distribute funds on behalf of wealthy local people, companies and other local organisations, including some charitable trusts. If they don’t have a suitable fund open for applications, their grants team will be able to signpost you to other funders who might be able to support your project.

You can often also subscribe to monthly email funding bulletins in your local area. NCVO, local community foundations and local voluntary action organisations typically offer free subscriptions. The Rural Services Network offers a particularly good monthly funding digest, which is free to subscribe to.

The NCVO website has an excellent guide to income and funding, which gives practical tips and step-by-step guides to help you identify suitable funders and make a good quality application.

Finally, in respect of looking for grant-makers, you can use technology to help you! Simply searching for funders for your project in Google can yield good suggestions, but as we get into a more AI-driven world, don’t be afraid to use programmes such as Copilot or ChatGPT. These AI tools can sift the information more accurately than a search engine, and you can ask them to look for funders for your specific project. Don’t expect perfection, but this can be a quick and easy way to build a shortlist of possible funders, and can provide direct links to grants criteria, funder priorities and application information.

Some of the largest and well known funders that are worth checking for larger projects are the National Lottery, Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, Garfield Weston Foundation, Lloyds Bank Foundation and Henry Smith Charity.

Please remember that all these funders will have strict eligibility and funding criteria, so please do check carefully before spending time writing an application. Sometimes, a small local charitable trust might be a much better fit!

Other support

Community Rail Network works with a number of organisations which are able to offer free advice and guidance to our members. The Plunkett Foundation is available to support people setting up or running community businesses.

If you are aware of other funding streams available that are especially relevant to community rail, send us an email and we’ll feature it.

Government grants

Government departments often offer grant funds. Some of these, such as the Department for Transport’s community rail funds, are provided via other organisations such as Community Rail Network, but if you have a project that may be of benefit beyond just the rail industry there are often other sources of funding. Find out more.

Local authority funds

Although local authority funding has reduced in recent years, they usually still hold a number of grant schemes. Many councils also have staff who can help advise you on where to find funds for local projects. If your community rail partnership is hosted by the council, there may be restrictions on what you can bid for, but it should also be easier to access advice from other council departments. Many councils also have ward, division or area committee funding pots that local councillors can direct towards community projects they support.

Check on your local council website to see if they offer help to organisations to find funding or to help you write grant applications. Some councils (see this example from Derbyshire) have webpages outlining schemes they operate or are aware of.

Tips on grant funding

• Before you start looking at grants, be clear what you need the funding for. Usually grants are provided to specific projects that can be delivered over a given timescale, with clear and measurable outcomes. Make sure you are clear about what success will look like as well as what the project will look like.
• Try to have some project ideas ready for grant applications. The deadline for some grants can be imminent, so if you’ve already done some of the work you’ll be less likely to miss out.
• Many grants are targeted at specific demographics. Are there ways you can tweak some of your projects so they meet the specific group that funding is available for without losing the spirit of what you’re trying to do?
• Read the criteria for grants very carefully. Grant bids are often rejected immediately if the information provided does not expressly show how it matches the criteria. Similarly, make sure you follow the process they specify such as forms, timescales and evidence required.
• Many grant-giving organisations offer advice in advance of any bid to talk through your proposal and this is tends to be worth taking up.
• No grant application is guaranteed to succeed even if you meet all of the criteria. Many are massively over-subscribed, so don’t assume you will get the money until they’ve confirmed it.

Corporate funding

There are other organisations out there which will sometimes provide funding for projects with community benefit – most notably local or national companies. Although some companies have charitable funds that can be applied for, most will support projects using budgets such as marketing, or sometimes ‘social value’. The key thing to remember is that companies exist first and foremost to deliver profit for their shareholders, and in approaching them it is essential to stress the benefit to them, of supporting your project. This could be additional social media reach, footfall, brand exposure, etc, or sometimes even just the kudos of being seen to support a worthy community project.

It’s worth remembering that despite their priority for driving profit, most companies will have a specific policy to demonstrate that they are responsible corporate citizens. This may be referred to as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) or Social Value, and it is definitely worth reviewing these sections on their website before making an approach. It is particularly worthwhile checking whether a company holds B-Corp status, which is a certification awarded to businesses that meet high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability.

Learn more about Community Rail Network’s corporate partners here.