John Moores Foundation

Grants for Merseyside

John Moores Foundation (registered charity 1207661) makes grants to small, grass-roots, charitable organisations in Merseyside (including Skelmersdale, Halton and Ellesmere Port). It funds running costs, salaries, capacity building and volunteer costs for work with people facing disadvantage. Examples include people in poverty, refugees, Black and racial minority communities, women and girls at risk of violence, carers and homeless people. Applicants with income over £750,000 are unlikely to be funded. Grants can run for up to three years for salaries, and the average Merseyside grant in 2024/25 was about £6,700-£6,800. Applications are accepted all year, but you must contact the Foundation first to get the form link.

Apply on the funder’s site

You could get: Amount not specified; no fixed round
Deadline: Rolling; apply any time
Effort: Heavy; budgets, references, often several stages

Who can apply

Local organisations doing charitable work based in Merseyside (including Skelmersdale, Halton and Ellesmere Port)
National organisations and groups based outside the region are excluded
Priority goes to small, grass-roots and volunteer-driven organisations that support those most in need, and to work in areas under-represented in the Foundation's grant-making
Organisations must have been established for at least a year and have one year of financial records (annual accounts, management accounts or detailed income and expenditure)
They also need a written set of rules and a bank account in the group's name requiring at least two unrelated signatories
Applicants with annual income over £750,000 are unlikely to be considered
Registered charities are preferred, but non-charities such as CICs can apply if their work is charitable in law
The Foundation prefers such groups to have at least three directors, mostly unrelated and unpaid, and CICs limited by shares are excluded
Organisations can hold only one JMF grant at a time
After three consecutive years of funding, they must wait 12 months before reapplying

What it funds

Running costs, salaries, capacity building, volunteer training and out-of-pocket expenses, and project costs. Both new and existing work is funded. The Foundation likes organisations or projects that help communities come together to work on the issues that matter to them, build trust and cohesion through partnership, provide advice and support, or change attitudes and broaden horizons. Target beneficiaries are:

People in poverty and financial crisis
Those in or at risk of poor physical or mental health
People in social, physical or cultural isolation
Black, Asian and minority ethnic people
Refugees
Women and girls, especially those at risk of violence and abuse
Children and young people aged 5 and over
People facing discrimination
Families needing support
Homeless people
Carers
Adults with few or no qualifications

Requests for up to 3 years are accepted when salaries or running costs are needed.

The Foundation prefers smaller grants to more projects, and it encourages paying the Real Living Wage.

What it will not fund

Individuals
Projects that are not substantially influenced by their target beneficiaries
National organisations or groups based outside the Merseyside region, even where some service users come from the area
Statutory work
Universities, colleges and schools, or work done with children in school time
Faith-based projects exclusively for members of that faith, or for the promotion of religion
Capital building costs
Festivals, carnivals and fêtes
Medicine or medical equipment
Holidays and expeditions
Gifts, parties etc
Conferences
Sport
Vehicles
Animal charities
Arts and the creative industries
Academic or medical research
Armed Forces and Veterans
Uniformed groups (e.g. scouts, cadets, majorettes)
Sponsorship, advertising or fund-raising events
Counsellors not registered with BACP or UKCP
CICs limited by shares

Trustees may consider sporting or artistic activities if the organisation's primary purpose is not sport or arts and the work fits their priorities

Applications may be refused where the organisation is already well funded or has large reserves. Unsolicited applications outside the policy criteria are not considered

How to apply

Check your project against the criteria and exclusions
Contact the Merseyside office (phone 0151 707 6077, email or letter) with a brief outline, to confirm eligibility and get a link to the online Expression of Interest form
Complete the online Expression of Interest form and attach a project budget (a paper copy can be requested if needed)
Stage 1: Trustees shortlist. You hear within about three months
If shortlisted, send the additional documents within 7 days. Staff may visit or phone
Trustees (who meet 5-6 times a year) make the final decision

A sample of the form is on the Downloads page. There are no deadlines; JMF operates a rolling system

Funded CICs must also send board minutes recording the grant and management accounts for the grant period at the end of the grant

Have ready

Completed online Expression of Interest form
Project budget (attached to the form)
Latest annual accounts
Latest annual report
Minutes from board meetings
List of current management committee members
Equal opportunities policy
Job description (when applying for wages)
Copy of bank statement in the organisation's name
Signed grant conditions form

Everything after the budget is requested only if you are shortlisted, and must be sent within 7 days. Groups without full accounts can use JMF's income and expenditure template

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