Toggle menu
  1. #supportDG
  2. Community support

Financial help for groups, organisations and charities

Funding information to help groups financially during the Coronavirus pandemic

Hand holding money

National Lottery Awards for All

(relaxed criteria for projects directly addressing impacts of COVID-19)

If you need funding to help you respond to COVID-19, Awards for All will consider an application from you even if you already have a National Lottery Awards for All grant for something else (or have had a grant in the last 12 months).

Awards for All may also try to get you a decision on your application more quickly than normal.

You can apply if your organisation is a:

  • Voluntary or community organisation
  • Registered charity
  • Constituted group or club
  • Not-for-profit company or Community Interest Company
  • School (as long as your project benefits and involves the communities around the school)
  • Statutory body (including town, parish and community council).
  • If you're a smaller organisation
  • We're keen to fund smaller organisations too. So we'll look at your income when we're making a decision.

Who we can't accept applications from:

  • Individuals
  • Sole traders
  • Companies that can pay profits to directors, shareholders or members (including Companies Limited by Shares)
  • Organisations based outside the UK
  • Organisations that have already sent a National Lottery Awards for All application and are waiting for a decision
  • Organisations that currently have National Lottery Awards for All funding - we can only fund your organisation for a maximum of £10,000 within a 12 month period. And you can only hold one grant, for each different country in the UK, at a time. If you want to apply for a new grant - you'll need to wait until your last grant with us is coming to an end
  • Organisations that don't have at least two people on their board or committee who aren't married, in a long-term relationship, living together at the same address, or related by blood
  • One organisation applying on behalf of another. Be careful of businesses or consultants who say they can support you with your funding applications. They might even say they're acting on the Fund's behalf, or they're a preferred supplier of the Fund. They could even offer to write an application for you. We wouldn't accept applications from these types of businesses or consultants. But you can get support and advice on writing your application from your local CVS (your local council for voluntary services).


Apply online at www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/funding

Community Response, Recovery & Resilience Fund (Foundation Scotland) 

The RRR Fund will support local charities and grassroots organisations across Scotland to help them respond to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic and recover from its impact.

Organisations can apply for grants between £1,000 and £5,000. The fund's primary focus is providing immediate funding support to constituted community groups and registered charities responding to the coronavirus pandemic by providing the following:

  • Support for the ongoing needs of vulnerable people to ensure their health and wellbeing is maintained
  • Support to groups and activities supporting vulnerable people self-isolating (the elderly, people with pre-existing medical conditions etc.)
  • Support for foodbanks and organisations working to combat hardship caused by the pandemic including child hunger
  • Support to aid community response coordination
  • Support for volunteer costs for new and existing organisations
  • Additional costs of working remotely and adapting services delivered in the wider community additional financial support as required for organisations providing emotional support, mental health and bereavement support

You can apply if:

  • You are a constituted group, with a governing document
  • Have a bank account must be set up in the name of the group
  • There must be at least 3 unrelated members on your management committee
  • There must be at least 2 unrelated cheque signatories
  • Committee meetings must have a quorum of at least 3 unrelated members present

The fund will not support:

  • Individuals
  • Private organisations operated as a business to make profit
  • Statutory organisations
  • Costs already incurred or activities which will take place before we have made a decision on funding (retrospective funding)
  • General fundraising appeals or activities
  • Projects which are for the advancement of religion or politics (however, we can accept applications from faith groups where there is clear benefit for the wider community irrespective of religious beliefs)
  • Projects which do not benefit people in Scotland
  • Projects aimed exclusively at animal, wildlife and conservation related charities or project


Apply online at www.foundationscotland.org.uk

Community & Third Sector Recovery Programme

The Community & Third Sector Recovery Programme aims to support charities, community groups, social enterprises and voluntary organisations that are supporting people and communities through the shift from lockdown to recovery. As well as providing ongoing crisis support, they will be planning and implementing changes to adapt and thrive in a very different social and economic climate.

The programme is now open and has two strands: Adapt & Thrive and Community Recovery Fund.

Persimmon Community Champions initiative

Persimmon's Community Champions initiative has run since 2015 and gives away £64,000 every month in single donations up to the value of £1,000. So far over £3.5 million has been donated in the UK. Persimmon has decided that from April 2020 all funding will go directly to groups supporting the over 70s.