What we fund
We will only consider applications that directly benefit the residents of Bristol (typically BS1 – BS16) and are in our specific areas of priority. Examples of recent awards are shown for each area.
Please note that all funding is provided at the discretion of the Trustees and on occasions, Trustees may make exceptional funding awards as they see fit.
Core and project costs
We will consider requests for core funding from well-managed organisations working in Bristol. We are particularly interested in supporting projects or organisations that aim to have a sustainable or transformative impact on people's lives. Organisations will need to demonstrate they have a viable plan for long term sustainability. We are unlikely to fund organisations which have unrestricted reserves of under three months or over twelve months. Our preference is not to fund salaries but appreciate that for service providers this may be unavoidable.
Capital projects
The majority of these awards are towards community projects and are in the region of £1,000 to £20,000. Applications for a larger amount may be considered for a significant capital project and in this case, we recommend that you contact us to discuss the project before submitting an application. In all cases, we expect organisations to contribute towards costs and will not fully fund projects.
Schools / Education providers
We are currently reviewing our educational provision and will publish guidance later in the year. Until then, we are currently not accepting any applications from Schools or educational providers.
Apart from exceptional circumstances, we do not fund:
- Work which the Trustees believe is the responsibility of the state eg. salaries in schools
- Work which will already have taken place before a grant is agreed
- Purchases of land or buildings
- In respect of larger capital projects, professional fees, building surveys, planning applications and feasibility studies.
- Heritage or conservation projects with no or limited community benefit
- Sports projects with no, or limited, community benefit
- Medical and other research projects
- Website development
- Publications
- Individual sponsorship
- Contributions to other grant making bodies