Supporting you through the application process
Current Programmes (scroll down for more information)
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Cheshire Community Foundation Main Grants Programme
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Cheshire Community Foundation Small Grants Programme
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Warrington Older Peoples Fund Main Grants Programme
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Warrington Older Peoples Fund Small Grants Programme
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#iWill Programme 2018 (Formerly Youth Social Action)
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Comic Relief Core Strength For Local Communities
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Young Minds Matter
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Building A Stronger Britain Together
We give grants to groups addressing priority needs within Cheshire and Warrington.
Through our grant making we aim to:
- Target community need that is informed by local research and local consultation
- Focus support to achieve maximum effectiveness
- Enhance community and voluntary activity in Cheshire
- Encourage best practice among community and voluntary groups
- Give help where it is needed most
We strive to make our grants process simple and easy for you. Our grants team are available to talk with you about your project idea and if the project is eligible to apply, and will suggest the most relevant grants programme for your application. Please contact us on 01606 330607 with any questions you may have.
Grants programmes open and close regularly so please do check the latest opportunities and deadlines. Applying to the most appropriate grants programme helps improve your chances of success and so we recommend you read and fully understand the guidelines for each programme.
For our Grant Making Complaints procedure please click here.
We recommend that you apply early within a grants programme application window – particularly where there may be a limited amount of funding available – as some programmes become over subscribed quickly. Wherever possible, avoid leaving the submission of your application to the last week or few days of the applications window as we have found that where an applicant has rushed in an application, it can affect the quality of the submission. It can also be beneficial for someone not closely connected to the project, to read the application, to see if they fully understand the project before it is finalised.
Capital projects
Recently we have found that there are less funds available to fund capital projects (building refurbishment or purchase of larger capital items). If you do have a capital project that you are considering applying for, please do talk to us about the likely chances of success with the project, before embarking on the application process.
Below you will find further details of our current open grants programmes including application deadlines. If you would like to discuss which fund is best for you, please call the grants team on 01606 330607 or email us at grants@cheshirecommunityfoundation.org.uk
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Cheshire Community Foundation: Small Grants Programme |
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| Grant type | Project costs (see Cheshire Community Foundation criteria below) |
| Fund supporters | Click HERE to see our current donors and key themes |
| Status | Open |
| Applications accepted from social enterprises? | Yes |
| Age range of beneficiaries supported by this programme | All ages |
| Minimum/maximum | £1-£1000 (Note: for a one off trip or lunch the maximum contribution is £250) |
| Frequency | Rolling programme |
| Deadlines | No deadline ongoing programme |
| Criteria | Please click HERE for the Grant Making Principles that apply to this Programme |
| Application form | Please click HERE to go directly to the application form |
| Date you will hear the outcome of your application | We aim to provide an outcome of your application within six weeks from receipt of a complete application (including the required documents) |
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Cheshire Community Foundation: Main Grants Programme |
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| Grant type | Project costs (see Cheshire Community Foundation criteria below) |
| Fund supporters | Click HERE to see our current donors and key themes |
| Status | Open |
| Applications accepted from social enterprises? | Yes |
| Age range of beneficiaries supported by this programme | All ages |
| Minimum/maximum | £1,000-£25,000 (Note: The average grant awarded is typically £8,000) |
| Frequency | Three Grants Panels per year in March, July and November |
| Current deadline | Open now – closes 18th May 2018 |
| Criteria | Please click HERE for the Grant Making Principles that apply to this Programme |
| Application form | Please call 01606 330607 for a discussion about your proposed application. We are reliant on funding for this programme from a number of donor funds, some of which are restricted to a particular geography, disadvantage or need. We encourage applicants to contact us beforehand to discuss likely chances of success. If we feel that there are potential donor funds available, we will provide you with a link to the application form. |
| Date you will hear the outcome of your application | for the July 2018 round notification will be by 27th July 2018 |
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Warrington Older Peoples Fund – Small Grants Programme |
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| Grant type | Project costs (see Cheshire Community Foundation criteria below) |
| Fund supporters | The Warrington Fund has been created through the transfer of two dormant Warrington Trusts Funds which have created the fund for this programme |
| Status | Open |
| Applications accepted from social enterprises? | Yes |
| Age range of beneficiaries supported by this programme | People over 50 in Warrington |
| Minimum/maximum | £1-£1000 (Note: for a one off trip or lunch the maximum contribution is £250) |
| Frequency | Rolling programme |
| Current deadline | No deadline – we aim to provide an outcome of your application within six weeks from receipt of a complete application |
| Criteria | Please click HERE for the Grant Making Principles that apply to this Programme. For additional criteria relevant to the Warrington Fund please click HERE |
| Application form | Please click HERE to go directly to the application form |
| Date you will hear the outcome of your application | We aim to provide an outcome of your application within six weeks from receipt of a complete application (including the required documents) |
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Warrington Older Peoples Fund – Main Grants Programme |
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| Grant type | Project costs (see Cheshire Community Foundation Criteria below) |
| Fund supporters | The Warrington Fund has been created through the transfer of two dormant Warrington Trusts Funds which have created the fund for this programme |
| Status | Open |
| Applications accepted from social enterprises? | Yes |
| Age range of beneficiaries supported by this programme | People over 50 in Warrington |
| Minimum/maximum | £1,000 to typically £5,000 |
| Frequency | Three Grants Panels per year in March, July and November. For this programme applicants are asked to come along to the Grant Panel, please see our top 10 tips for this process HERE |
| Current deadline | Open now closes 11th May 2018 |
| Criteria | Please click HERE for the Grant Making Principles that apply to this Programme. For additional criteria relevant to the Warrington Fund please click HERE |
| Application form | Please click HERE to go directly to the application form |
| Date you will hear the outcome of your application | for the July Round we aim to provide an outcome by 27th July 2018 |
Partner Grants Programmes Managed by Cheshire Community Foundation
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#iWill Programme 2018 (Formerly Youth Social Action) |
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| Grant type | Project costs (see #iWill Criteria) |
| Fund supporters | Department for Culture Media & Sport
Big Lottery Fund |
| Status | Open |
| Applications accepted from social enterprises? | Yes |
| Age range of beneficiaries supported by this programme | Young people 10 to 20 years (up to 25 for disabled young people) |
| Minimum/maximum (Total funding available) | £1,000-£5,000 (£90,000) |
| Opening | Open |
| Current deadline | Open now closes 11th May 2018 |
| Criteria | Please click HERE for the Programme criteria and HERE for background to the Programme |
| Application form | Please click HERE to go directly to the application form |
| Date you will hear the outcome of your application | For the July Round by 27th July |
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Comic Relief Core Strength Local Communities Grant 2017/18 |
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| Grant type | Core costs (see Comic Relief Criteria) |
| Fund supporters | Comic Relief |
| Status | Closed |
| Applications accepted from social enterprises? | Yes |
| Age range of beneficiaries supported by this programme | All ages |
| Minimum/maximum | £1,000-£5,000 |
| Opening | Closed |
| Current deadline | Closed |
| Criteria | For Comic Relief Core Strength Local Communities Grant Guidance click HERE
Please note the maximum income for organisations applying is £100,000 |
| Application form | Please click HERE to go directly to the application form |
| Date you will hear the outcome of your application | Check back at a later date |
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Young Minds Matter 2017 – 2018 |
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| Grant type | Projects aimed at tackling mental health, specifically projects that focus on early intervention, coping mechanisms, outreach programmes in deprived areas, awareness building and increasing empathy and understanding of mental health issues experienced by young people. |
| Fund supporters | To be confirmed |
| Status | Check back at a later date |
| Applications accepted from social enterprises? | Yes |
| Age range of beneficiaries supported by this programme | 5 to 20 years old (up to 25 for disabled young people) |
| Expected funding to be available | By May 2018 we aim to have awarded £200,000 of funds for one year projects minimum grant £5,000 maximum £50,000 (we expect to make around 4 grant awards depending on the amounts requested).
In 2019 grantees who have successfully delivered projects in year one may be invited to apply for a share of a further £300,000 of funds. It is anticipated that 3 of the originally awarded projects will be awarded up to £50,000 each over 2 years (£100,000 in total per grantee). |
| Opening | This programme is now closed. For those applicants that submitted a full application you will be notified of the outcome of your EOI by 18th May 2018 |
| Current deadline | full applications now being assessed |
| Criteria | Please click Young Minds Matter Programme 2017 Fund Criteria for the grants criteria |
| Application form | N/A |
| Date you will hear the outcome of your application | We will notify successful and unsuccessful full Applicants by 18th May 2018 |
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Building A Stronger Britain Together Round 3 |
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| Grant type | Supporting civil society and community organisations who work to create more resilient communities, stand up to extremism in all its forms and offer vulnerable individuals a positive alternative, regardless of race, faith, sexuality, age and gender. |
| Fund supporters | Home Office |
| Status | Closed |
| Applications accepted from social enterprises? | Yes |
| Age range of beneficiaries supported by this programme | All ages |
| Minimum/Maximum |
£1,000 – £14,999 for groups with an annual income less than £200,000 £15,000 – £50,000 for other groups with a priority of groups with less than £250,000 |
| Opening | Check back at a later date |
| Current deadline | Closed – applications submitted are currently being assessed |
| Criteria | Please click HERE for the grants criteria |
| Application form | Click HERE for more information about the programme and to apply for a grant |
| Date you will hear the outcome of your application | The Home Office will advise groups of the outcome of their application from 05/04/2018 |