Guide to other funders
Below you will find a list of free grant directories, other useful community resources, and a selection of funders that support community, youth, and/or music projects. We recommend you use your search function tool (control + F on your keyboard) to navigate this page with keywords such as location or eligibility criteria to find the right funder. For example, if you are an organisation working in Wales we recommend you use organisation and Wales as keywords, or if you are an individual looking for funding in London you can use the keywords London and individual.
While we aim to keep this guide up to date and accurate, some funders may have changed their focus since this guide was last updated. Before considering making an application, we’d advise you to contact the organisation directly for full current guidelines and eligibility criteria. If you spot any errors or broken links you can report them by emailing grants@youthmusic.org.uk.
Funders
Grants for: Organisations, Individuals, groups
Amounts: Various
Where: England
The Arts Council invest in art and culture for a lasting return. They're looking for organisations, artists, events, initiatives and others to apply for their funding and help them achieve their strategy, Let's Create.
Grants for: Organisations, Individuals, groups
Amounts: Various
Where: Wales
Arts Council Wales help people to make, present and exhibit the arts. They work with artists and organisations to reach as many people as they can. And they research the ways we can protect and sustain creative activities in Wales.
Grants for: Organisations, Individuals, groups
Amounts: Various
Where: Northern Ireland
Arts Council N.Ireland distribute public money and National Lottery funds to develop and deliver a wide variety of arts projects, events and initiatives across Northern Ireland.
Grants for: Organisations who exclusively work in creativity with young people with mental health.
Grant Amounts: small scale grants
The Baring Foundation romotes the role of creativity in the lives of people with mental health problems.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: £1,000 - £100,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The BBC Children in Need general grants programme offers grants to UK-based registered charities or other not-for-profit organisations who work with disadvantaged children and young people aged 18 years and under. They currently have project and core grants available.
National Lottery Community Fund
Grants for: Organisations, groups
Grant Amounts: £300 - £20,000+
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
National Lottery funds great ideas that help communities to thrive. Groups can apply for funding under £20,000, or over £20,000, depending on what they want to do.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: £10,000-30,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The UK Branch of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation funds only not-for-profit organisations based in the UK and Republic of Ireland. Founded in 1956 with cultural, educational and social interests, they aim to enrich and connect the experiences of people in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland and secure lasting and beneficial change in their lives.
Grants for: Charities
Grant Amounts: Small Clore Fund is the Foundation’s unsolicited funding programme, offering grants of up to £200,000 to develop a Clore Learning Space.
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Foundation is a grant-making charity which supports cultural learning, the creation of learning spaces within arts and heritage organisations, leadership training, and enhancing Jewish life. The Foundation primarily makes solicited grants, but currently has an unsolicited Small Clore Fund for small-mid sized arts and heritage organisations to develop a Clore Learning Space – an active, inspirational learning space.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: Various
Where: Worldwide including UK
Comic Relief is a major charity based in the UK, with a vision of a just world, free from poverty. It has recently launched a new five-year strategy, and is yet to release details of its new funding programmes.
Grants for: Organisations, Individuals, groups
Grant Amounts: £1,000 - £100,000
Where: Scotland
Creative Scotland funding is open to individuals, groups or organisations to apply for, supporting a wide range of activity in the arts, screen and creative industries.
Grants for: Charities
Grant Amounts: £500 - £6,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust funds United Kingdom Registered Charities operating in the UK in the fields of the advancement of the arts, health and medical welfare and environmental protection or improvement.
Universal Music UK Sound Foundation
Grants for: Individuals, schools
Grant Amounts: up to £5,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Ireland.
The Foundation’s aim is to improve access to music education in the UK & Ireland. Their programmes include funding for: individuals in full-time education towards instrument/equipment costs, schools towards musical resources, teachers towards one-off training courses, and bursaries for students at one of their 11 partner colleges/organisations.
Grants for: Organisations (with a turnover of more than £100,000)
Grant Amounts: £30,000+
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The foundation aims to improve our natural world, secure a fairer future and strengthen the bonds in communities in the UK
Grants for: Organisations, Individuals
Grant Amounts: Various
Where: Europe
The Foundation supports the arts across Europe by investing in initiatives that strengthen European sentiment.
Grants for: Individuals, Groups
Grant Amounts: Up to £5,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Fidelio welcomes applications for grants in support of the Arts particularly for Music, including Opera, Lieder, Composition and Dance. Applications are not generally considered for activities for people under the age of 21, or for course fees, capital items or retrospective expenditure.
Grants for: Charities
Grant Amounts: £1,000+
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Garfield Weston Foundation supports a wide range of organisations with grants of varying sizes. These include welfare, youth, community, environment, education, health, arts, heritage and faith.
Grants for: Charities
Grant Amounts: Up to £5,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Hedley foundation supports project that raise the aspirations of disadvantaged young people through education, the arts, sport and adventurous activities.
Grants for: Individuals, Groups, Organisations
Grant Amounts: Various
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Help Musicians UK is the leading UK charity for professional musicians of all genres, from starting out through to retirement. Help Musicians can help at times of crisis, but also at times of opportunity, giving people the extra support they need at a crucial stage that could make or break their career
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: Various
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Jerwood Foundation supports excellence and emerging talent in the arts. They accept funding applications from organisations focused on making art available for public benefit and working with the Jerwood Collection.
Grants for: Individuals, Groups, Organisations
Grant Amounts: Various. They are not currently accepting unsolicited funding applications.
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Lankelly Chase fund people, organisations and networks taking action to either reveal, question and dismantle or heal, reimagine and transform systems. They have a particular focus on those systems that result in the mental distress, violence and destitution experienced by people who are subject to marginalisation in the UK.
The Skinners' Charity Foundation
Grants for: Organisations, Individuals
Grant Amounts: Up to £2,000 for individuals. Up to £2,000 for arts, heritage and community organisations with turnovers of under £200,000. Up to £10,000 for charities support young people into employment.
Where: England – primarily in London and Kent
The Skinners’ Charity Foundation provides project and capital grants for arts, heritage and community projects working primarily in London and Kent, of up to £2,000 per year. They also offer individual grants for young people undertaking vocational qualifications, charities supporting young people into employment and charities supporting people experiencing poverty.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: Up to £75,000
Where: England, Wales
The Lloyds Foundation funds small and local charities, investing in their work helping people overcome complex social issues across England and Wales.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: £500 - £5,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Old Possum’s Practical Trust is a registered charity giving grants to support literary, artistic, musical and theatrical projects and organisations.
Grants for: Individuals, Groups, Organisations
Grant Amounts: Various
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, India
Paul Hamlyn Foundation is one of the largest independent grant-makers in the UK. They invest around £30 million each year across six funding priorities where they wish to see change. Their commitment to social justice underpins all these priorities.
Grants for: Individuals, Groups, Organisations
Grant Amounts: Up to £5,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Assistance is given to organisations and individuals in need throughout the U.K. Charities assisting disadvantaged youth, people with disabilities, people with mental health problems and older people may apply for grants towards furnishings and equipment (excluding office items), building or refurbishment projects. Social Workers, Community Psychiatric Nurses and Occupational Therapists within Local Authorities or NHS Trusts may apply on behalf of individuals in financial need who have a disability or severe mental health problem, or who are over 65 on low income, for basic household items including white goods, single beds, flooring and clothing vouchers.
Grants for: Individuals aged 16-30.
Grant Amounts: £10 - £500
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Prince’s Trust Development Awards can support people aged 16 to 30 who are studying less than 14 hours a week and unemployed or working less than 16 hours a week. The awards can support courses up to Level 3, equipment or uniform for a job or qualification, job licence fees, and transport to work prior to the first pay slip.
Grants for: Individuals, Groups, Organisations
Grant Amounts: Various
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
PRS Foundation invest in the future of music by supporting talent development and new music across the UK; enabling songwriters and composers of all backgrounds to realise their potential and reach audiences across the world.
The Austin and Hope Pilkington Trust
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: £1,000 – 5,0000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Austin and Hope Pilkington Trust award grants to registered UK charities that work with communities in the UK. They focus on specific priorities every year.
Grants for: Charities
Grant Amounts: £20,000 - £30,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Global’s Make Some Noise prioritises small charities that are working to address one of their key focus areas and achieving change for communities in the UK. The four key focus areas are: Providing safety and shelter, Supporting physical and/or mental health, Developing life skills, Reducing isolation or improving inclusion.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: £20,000 - £70,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Grants for small and medium sized organisations in the UK to support projects and the running costs of organisations.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: Up to £5,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Trustees' main grants programme supports projects in two areas: performing arts and heritage conservation.
The Oppenheim-John Downes Memorial Trust
Grants for: Individuals
Grant Amounts: £250 - £1000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Oppenheim-John Downes Memorial Trust provides small scale grants to British artists, designers, writers and performers over the age of 30 who are experiencing financial difficulties in the pursuit of their careers.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: £2,500 – 7,500
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Radcliffe Trust supports classical music performance and training, especially chamber music, composition and music education. Particular interests within music education are music for children and adults with special needs, youth orchestras and projects at secondary and higher levels, including academic research. The Trustees respond to applications and also initiate their own projects.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: £5,000- 10,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Santander Foundation funds local, regional and national charities for their work within the UK. The Santander Foundation is committed to supporting local communities and disadvantaged people. It funds registered charities under the priorities of education and training, financial advice and community regeneration.
The Sylvia Waddilove Foundation
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: £1,000- 5,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Foundation provides grants of up to £5,000 for charities and some not-for-profit organisations to part fund the capital costs of projects in the following areas: Promotion and education of organic farming, non-domestic animal husbandry and veterinary science, Visual and performing arts, Medical research, Relief of disability and severe illness, The preservation of buildings of architectural or historical significance, The accommodation of those in need.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: Up to £7,000
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
The Trustees will consider applications for support in those areas of music performance and education which do not readily attract backing from commercial sponsors or other funding bodies, or which are not eligible for public funding. Priority will be directed towards supporting the work or education of musicians based in, or wishing to study in, the UK, but by no means exclusively so. Priority will be given to those organisations which give opportunities to young professionals and to education projects for young people as well as for new adult audiences.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: Various
Where: London
Trust for London is a charitable organisation that exists to reduce poverty and inequality in London. The Trust does this by funding the voluntary and community sector and others, as well as by using their own expertise and knowledge to support work that tackles poverty and its root causes.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: Unknown – currently closed to new applications.
Where: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Tudor makes grants, and provides other types of support, to voluntary and community groups working in any part of the UK. They particularly want to help smaller, community-led organisations that work directly with people who are at the margins of society: organisations that support positive changes in people’s lives and in their communities. New applications are currently closed as the Truste re-thinks how it will operate in the future and embed racial justice.
Grants for: Charities
Grant Amounts: Up to £10,000
Where: England, Wales
The Yapp Charitable Trust makes small grants, for running costs and salaries, to small registered charities in England and Wales to help sustain their existing work. Two of their priority funding areas are children and young people, and education and learning.
Grants for: Organisations
Grant Amounts: various
Where: London
The Greater London Authority distributes grants to support communities and civil society organisations.