The National Lottery Community Fund (UK Office): Bringing People Together
Overview
This funding is for projects that build stronger connections across communities. They're looking for ideas that strengthen these connections by exploring and developing the conditions needed to build better and longer-lasting ways of bringing people together.
They’re interested in:
- deliver across at least two UK countries (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales) – you can work in a network or partnership
- are bold and experimental responses to bringing people together using new approaches, or a new combination of approaches
- can demonstrate clear positive impacts for communities, including those communities most in need of support
- have a clear focus on equality, diversity and inclusion
- can demonstrate they can learn and adapt as they go.
Priorities
They recognise that most community-led projects will bring communities together in some way. However, in this programme, we’re particularly interested in projects that focus on one or more of the following priorities. They’re looking for projects that:
- build connections across communities, not just within existing communities. They’re looking for projects that can foster a positive sense of belonging by reducing divisive ‘us and them’ attitudes
- support and explore what’s needed to connect communities and enables stronger collaboration to bring people together and keep people together – for example, community infrastructure like networks, shared resources or coordinated approaches, or supporting infrastructure organisations that support the work of other groups
- focus on creating longer-term change. This could mean a focus on improving the conditions available to communities to help create this change (instead of only delivering services or a series of public events)
- build collective action and strengthen communities’ own abilities to have control, influence and agency on the things that matter most to them.
- They’re also interested in supporting projects that respond to national and significant moments that are important to communities across the UK and relevant to the societal challenges we face.
Area
- UK-wide
- Suitable for Voluntary and community organisations
Funding size
- Up to a maximum of £1 million for up to five years. They expect most of the funding will go to projects that request between £200,000 and £500,000. There will be a smaller number of awards for projects above £500,000. There will be a smaller number of awards for projects above £500,000.
- Application deadline: ongoing
Who can apply
They support applications from:
- both large and small organisations
- consortiums or partnerships – in this case, a lead partner will need to take responsibility for the application process.
You can apply if you are a UK-based:
- registered charity
- community interest company (CIC)
- Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO)
- community benefit society
- co-operative society (if it has a not-for-profit clause and registered with the Financial Conduct Authority)
- voluntary or community organisation
- statutory body (including town, parish and community councils)
- company limited by guarantee (if it has a not-for-profit clause or is a registered charity).
They want to support underrepresented communities
They're particularly interested in projects led by, or supporting people and communities experiencing ethnic or racial inequity, discrimination or inequality, disabled people, LGBTQ+ people, and people who are seeking asylum or who are refugees. We want to see more people in these communities represented in our funding.
If you already have funding from them
You can still apply if you have a current grant from The National Lottery Community Fund. They’ll have to consider how this funding would complement and impact on existing awards during the assessment process.
If there’s a high demand for this funding, they may need to prioritise organisations that do not already have grant funding from them.
Board or committee members
You need to have at least two people on your board or committee who are unrelated. By unrelated they mean people who are not:
- related by blood to each other
- married to each other
- in a civil partnership with each other
- in a long-term relationship with each other
- living together at the same address.
They can support a wide range of organisations and welcome applications from both larger and smaller organisations.
They can accept applications from consortiums or partnerships. In this case, a lead partner will need to take responsibility for the application process.
What they’re likely to fund
They recognise that most community-led projects will bring communities together in some way. However, in this programme, they’re particularly interested in projects that focus on one or more of the following priorities. We’re looking for projects that:
- build connections across communities, not just within existing communities. We’re looking for projects that can foster a positive sense of belonging by reducing divisive ‘us and them’ attitudes
- support and explore what’s needed to connect communities and enables stronger collaboration to bring people together and keep people together – for example, community infrastructure like networks, shared resources or coordinated approaches, or supporting infrastructure organisations that support the work of other groups
- focus on creating longer-term change. This could mean a focus on improving the conditions available to communities to help create this change (instead of only delivering services or a series of public events)
- build collective action and strengthen communities’ own abilities to have control, influence and agency on the things that matter most to them.