Grant types
Whatever type of grant you apply for, please read each section to understand what we look for and the likely scale of a grant.
The Open Grants Fund is open for applications from 9 March to 11 May 2026. The deadline is Monday 11 May 2026 at 10am.
We will run a webinar on Wednesday 25 March, 12.30pm – 1.30pm which you can register for here. We encourage prospective applicants to attend and be part of the conversation. The webinar will be recorded and uploaded on to our website.
Whatever you’re applying for, we wish you every success. We look forward to reading your application soon.
Operating/core cost grants
What are they for?
These grants are made towards the general costs of running your organisation. This means they can be used to help pay your bills or rent and provide support towards your salaries. We don’t use the term ‘unrestricted’ as our operating/core cost grants can’t be put towards endowments or building up your organisation’s reserves. They are to help your organisation deliver its vital work. They are sometimes referred to as ‘revenue grants’ by other funders.
What do I need to consider?
Operating/core cost grants can be made for one year in this round of funding. In this round we are not offering multi-year grants.
What size are operating/core cost grants?
We are not able to fund all of your operating costs and the size of grant will vary depending on the size of your organisation.
Project/specific activity grants
What are they for?
These grants are for a specific project or area of your work. It will have a defined scope of work and timetable, for example:
A theatre’s outreach project on puppet making with marginalised communities over a nine month period
A heritage and craft educators’ bursary programme over a year
Offering enamelling skills development for emerging and professional artists for a six month period
What do I need to consider?
We are unlikely to be the only funder of a project and so please tell us what other funding sources you are building into in your fundraising plan.
We want to understand all the costs involved in delivering your project, including materials and a reasonable contribution to your organisation’s core costs or overheads (up to 15%).
What size are project grants?
Grants vary depending on the total cost and scope of the project.