Funding & Training Focus - 23 July

A bit of sun, a lot of funding

We’re into the heart of summer now and whether your group’s in full swing or just easing into planning mode, there are some brilliant opportunities to help move things forward.

This week’s round-up has a real mix to dig into: there’s major support for community climate action, free trees for schools and local groups, and new funding for heritage projects, musicians, and organisations supporting people into work. So whether you're outdoors planting, indoors plotting, or somewhere in between, there's something worth a look.

Stick the kettle on, take five, and see what might help take your next idea from “we should do that” to “we’re doing it”.

And as always, if you spot something interesting and want to talk it through, just drop me a line: mwollberg@engagerenfrewshire.com

 

Arts and Music

Funding Opportunities for Musicians
Grants of up to £500 are available to support UK musicians at pivotal stages in their careers. The Help Musicians Fast Track Awards programme aims to help musicians grow or sustain their income or participate in something that could take their careers to the next level. The funding can be used for anything from courses, networking opportunities, and equipment to recording, releasing, and performing costs. To be eligible, applicants must be 18 and over, have no more than £10,000 in savings or access to other capital, and have a track record of making 40% of their income from music over the last two or more years. The closing date for applications is 25 July 2025. Find out more
 

£1.4 Million Fund to Boost the Youth Music Sector
Organisations and individuals in the youth music sector will soon be able to apply for a share of £1.4 million through the Scottish Government’s Youth Music Initiative, administered by Creative Scotland. Aimed at increasing access to high-quality music-making opportunities for young people up to age 25 (or up to 30 for those who are disabled, care-experienced, or young carers), the initiative also supports the development of the wider youth music sector. Two funding strands are available: the Access to Music Making Fund offers grants of up to £40,000 for projects addressing inequity through high-quality music opportunities, while the Strengthening Youth Music Fund provides up to £20,000 for initiatives that enhance sector infrastructure and organisational services. Applications open on 5 August 2025. Find out more
 

Funding for Theatre & Dance Tours
Scotland-based dance and theatre artists, choreographers, producers, companies, and venues are invited to apply for a share of £2 million in National Lottery funding to support live performance tours from Spring 2026. Creative Scotland’s Touring Fund for Theatre and Dance will continue to support the touring of a wide range of theatre and dance productions fostering collaboration among artists, producers, companies, and venues to broaden access and engage diverse audiences. Funding covers the full amount required to produce and tour, with no upper or lower limits on the amount that can be applied for. The deadline for applications is 2pm on 24 September 2025. Find out more

Music for All Opens New Funding Round
Music for All has opened a new round of Community Project Funding for projects and initiatives across the UK seeking to bring music to their community. Grants are available to community groups, schools and individuals under several different categories, each with its own criteria and award amounts. This round will support projects working with underprivileged children aged 0-4 years, groups with mental health challenges and those affected by loneliness and isolation, and community initiatives for those with mobility and accessibility needs. It will also fund choral singing opportunities for underprivileged groups, as well as entry-level descant recorders and music packs for communities in deprived or marginalised areas. The deadline for applications is 12pm on 24 September 2025. Find out more

Community Projects

Age Scotland Funding
Are you a community project looking to support people living with dementia or unpaid carers in your area? Apply from 29 July for our ‘Encouraging and Supporting Grassroots Activity’ Fund! Grants of between £5,000 and £20,000 are now available to organisations and community groups across Scotland. Successful
groups will be funded for a 12 month period starting from 01 April 2026. Applications will close Friday 5 September 2025. Visit our website to find out more.


The GRI LAG Rural Community Led Local Development fund (CLLD) grant programme is now open
The LAG has been allocated circa £50,000 of REVENUE funding. The LAG is welcoming applications for Revenue projects with costs between £5,000 – £10,000
The aim of the CLLD Fund is to deliver community-based activity to meet one or more of the Scottish Government and GRI LAG priorities:

• Encourage and support rural communities and villages
• Address climate change
• Increase and sustain local rural businesses, micro businesses and social enterprises
• Address inclusion, diversity and equality and rural poverty issues (including child poverty, food security and support for working families)
• Create specific opportunities for young people
• Foster partnership working

If you would like to make an enquiry or have a project in mind please review the information on the website and submit an expression of interest via the link on the home page or via this link: Expression of Interest - grilag.com
Your project idea will be assessed and if thought to eligible you will be invited to complete a full application form.
The deadline for full applications is 24 August 2025. Find out more
 

Funding to Support Community-Based Health Charities
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), in partnership with the King’s Fund, is offering funding and training for health charities across the UK. The 2026 GSK IMPACT Awards recognise and reward community-based charities (operating for at least three years) making a significant impact on people's health and wellbeing. Up to 15 awards will be made, ranging from £4,000 to £50,000. Eligible charities must have an annual income between £150,000 and £3 million. Applications close on the 20th August 2025. The GSK Community Health Programme offers funding to smaller charities (operating for at least one year) working to address health inequalities within their communities. Up to 10 charities will receive grants of up to £10,000. Eligible charities must have an annual income between £20,000 and £150,000. Applications close on 11 August 2025. Successful applicants will also be offered training and development support. Find out more
 

Grants to Support Vulnerable People During the Cost-of-Living Crisis
Grants of up to £2,500 are available to UK registered charities and community groups to help address the ongoing cost-of-living crisis. The Arnold Clark Community Fund is open to organisations directly helping people most impacted by rising living costs, such as food and utility banks, shelters, poverty-relief services, accommodation aid, and initiatives promoting equal opportunities. To be eligible, organisations must be operating within 50 miles of an Arnold Clark branch. Applications are particularly encouraged from smaller voluntary and community organisations. The closing date for applications is 31 July 2025. Find out more

Environmental, Nature and Climate Change

Riverwoods Development Grant
The key purpose of Riverwoods is to create a network of river woodlands and healthy river systems throughout Scotland, which will deliver a range of benefits including flood protection, improved water quality and improvements for salmon fisheries, as well as helping to tackle the twin challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss. The Riverwoods Development Grant seeks to support local organisations in overcoming these barriers by supporting the production of River Woodland Development Plans. These plans focus on identifying opportunities to expand river woodlands and restore riparian habitats, serving as a critical first step to enhance river health, improve habitat connectivity, and boost species and ecosystem resilience, diversity, and access to nature.
The Grant enables this work by supporting scoping, initial engagement, planning, and design activities for river woodland creation and restoration projects. Please be aware this is a single, one-off application round with a submission deadline of 12 noon on Monday 28 July 2025 and is for support of projects within Scotland only. Find out more
 

Free Trees for Schools & Community Groups
Hundreds of thousands of trees are being given away to help the UK reach its 2050 carbon net-zero target. Schools, nurseries, colleges, universities, outdoor learning centres, and other groups, such as resident associations, sports clubs, parish councils, Scouts, and Guides, from across the UK are among the organisations eligible to apply for up to 420 saplings to improve their local environment. Tree packs include hedging, copse, wild harvest, year-round colour, working wood, wild wood, wildlife, and urban trees. The Woodland Trust  are currently taking applications for tree packs to be delivered in November 2025. Applications will close on the 28 August 2025. Find out more
 

Funding Available to Involve More People in Tackling Climate Change
The National Lottery Community Fund’s Climate Action Fund – Our Shared Future is now open for applications as part of a ten-year, £100 million commitment to community-level climate action. The fund supports projects that embed climate action into daily life, especially among groups previously unengaged or facing barriers such as poverty or discrimination. Grants typically range from £500,000 to £1.5 million, with up to £3 million available for exceptional projects over seven years. Up to 25 projects will be funded, with a focus on formal partnerships between community, voluntary, and public sector organisations. Eligible applicants include charities, voluntary groups, CIOs, schools, universities, statutory bodies, and other not-for-profits. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis until at least 17 December 2025. Find out more
 

Funding for Community-Led Tree Planting Projects
Community groups, schools, and local organisations can apply for grants to support tree planting and conservation projects on public or publicly accessible land through the International Tree Foundation’s 2025 UK Community Tree Planting Programme. Funding is available for planting between 100 and 10,000 trees per year, with up to £2.05 provided per tree for woodlands and hedging, plus two maintenance grants of £0.10 per tree in the first two summers after planting. Projects may also include community engagement and educational activities. The application process consists of an initial eligibility check followed by a detailed proposal for shortlisted projects, with assessments beginning in October 2025 and a final deadline of 12 December 2025. Find out more
 

Grants for Ecological Outreach Projects
Individuals and organisations such as schools, museums, libraries and community groups can apply to the British Ecological Society for grants of up to £2,000 to promote ecological science to a wide audience. The Outreach and Engagement Grants programme funds activities that engage public audiences in innovative and creative ways, and enhances the skills of others in communicating ecology to public audiences. Applications from schools must involve significant outreach beyond schools. Projects aimed solely at delivering curriculum to school children will not be considered. The grant may be used as part-funding for larger projects involving other sponsors. The closing date for applications is 08 September 2025. Find out more


Funding to Improve Local Green Spaces (Scotland)
Grants of up to £250 are available to local volunteer groups for environmental projects that improve urban areas across Scotland. Offered through the Volunteering Matters Action Earth Grants programme, this funding supports practical, outdoor conservation activities that enhance local biodiversity and green spaces in cities, towns and villages. This could include creating or improving community gardens, shared spaces, wildflower meadows, ponds, community woodlands, and other wildlife habitats. Funded by the National Lottery Community Fund and NatureScot, these grants support volunteers of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities, with priority given to activities that address health inequalities, promote social inclusion, and engage younger and underrepresented volunteers. Applications can be made at any time. Projects must be completed by the end of February 2026. Find out more