GrantRadar

The Medlock Charitable Trust

Medlock Charitable Trust Grants

Grants from £500 to £50,000 (most between £5,000 and £15,000) for UK registered charities that strengthen local communities, relieve poverty and support vulnerable people, including young, elderly and disabled people. The trust focuses mainly, but not only, on projects in Somerset and in Boston, Lincolnshire. It prefers spreading many smaller grants across small local charities, particularly those using volunteers, and can split a grant over up to five years.

Apply on the funder’s site
You could get
£500 – £50,000
no fixed round
Deadline
Rolling
apply any time
Effort
Moderate
full application with documents

Who can apply

  • UK registered charities only
  • The online form needs a Charity Commission registration number, and organisations without one must phone or email instead
  • Projects must be carried out in the UK
  • The primary, but not exclusive, focus is Somerset (the trust's featured projects are around Bath and North East Somerset) and Boston in Lincolnshire
  • The trust prefers smaller local charities for which a grant will be transformative, and particularly favours charities that use volunteers
  • A charity turned down must wait until the next financial year (the year ends 31 July) before applying again

What it funds

  • UK projects in education and training, health and social care, housing, sports and recreation, arts and culture, environment and conservation, community services and employment
  • The trust gives directly to local organisations and services such as universities, schools and hospitals, to community charities and to other grant-making charities with similar priorities
  • In the founder's son's words, it wants to 'support what goes on in buildings rather than the buildings themselves'
  • Grants can be split over up to five years, with each annual payment conditional on progress, and the same project can be funded in consecutive years
  • Education funding goes to initiatives for people who need extra support

What it will not fund

  • Organisations that are not UK registered charities
  • Projects carried out overseas (the sister Coles-Medlock Foundation covers these)
  • Individuals
  • Animal charities
  • Sponsorship of competitions or events
  • Educational institutions where only a privileged elite will benefit
  • Charities working outside the trust's specific areas of interest (unlikely to be supported)
  • More than one grant to the same charity in one year, even for a separate project (not usual)

How to apply

  1. Read the FAQs and the introduction page of the online application form
  2. Register and complete the online application at https://medlockcharitabletrust.org/applications/, entering the charity registration number, contact details, an overview of the organisation, what you want funding for, expected outcomes, monitoring and evaluation plans, and grant details (amount, period, location, target audience, other funding)
  3. Upload supporting documents as PDFs (maximum 5 MB each)
  4. Confirm your policies and accept the terms and conditions, then submit
  5. Trustees review and approve applications monthly
  6. If awarded, confirm receipt of the grant, send a written signed receipt, and report on outcomes (normally after 12 months and at the end of the project, and annually for multi-year grants before each further payment)

The trust will not reply to applications sent any other way. If you cannot use the online form, contact the office first

If unsuccessful, wait until the next financial year (starting 1 August) before reapplying

Have ready

  • Most recent annual report and accounts
  • Forecast budget for the work, showing short-term and long-term sustainability
  • Full application or other supporting documents (PDF upload)
  • Confirmation of policies (vulnerable persons/safeguarding, health and safety, DBS, GDPR, equal opportunities)
  • Details of volunteer days and pro bono services given to the charity

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