GrantRadar

Three Guineas Trust

Holiday activity schemes for autistic children and young people

Three Guineas Trust, one of the Sainsbury Family Charitable Trusts, gives grants of up to £15,000, usually towards part of the costs, to not-for-profit organisations running established school-holiday activity schemes exclusively for autistic children and young people and their siblings, anywhere in the UK. Schemes that mix autistic children with other disabled or neurodivergent children, new schemes, residential activities and organisations with income over £1 million are not eligible. The 2026 round is finished; the 2027 round will open for expressions of interest early in 2027, with key dates posted in January. In 2026 the trust received 218 expressions of interest and funded 29 schemes; 80% were ineligible.

Apply on the funder’s site
You could get
Up to £15,000
Deadline
Not published
no closing date given
Effort
Moderate
full application with documents

Who can apply

  • Not-for-profit organisations with income of £1 million or less that already run autistic-specific school-holiday activity schemes in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland
  • Applicants must: have a safeguarding policy and DBS or Disclosure Scotland checks for staff and volunteers working with the children or on related admin; hold Public Liability Insurance, Employer's Liability Insurance if staff are paid, and proper insurance for volunteer drivers; pay staff the Living Wage or better; have a management committee that meets at least twice a year; have a bank account with two unrelated people authorising or checking payments; have two years of published accounts; have a diversity, equity and inclusion policy, a complaints procedure, a whistleblowing policy and confidentiality and data protection policies; and work in ways that discourage bullying, discrimination and harassment
  • Schools, nurseries, early years settings, local authorities and NHS Trusts cannot apply

What it funds

  • Autistic-specific activity schemes that run in the school holidays, exclusively for autistic children and young people and their siblings (including sessions for siblings)

Grants are usually for part of the costs.

Schemes must use professionally trained staff and volunteers (not parents or guardians) trained in autism awareness, positive approaches to behaviour and communication support including de-escalation, and health and safety, with at least one person trained in first aid and medical needs support present.

What it will not fund

  • Playschemes that include some autistic children alongside other disabled or neurodivergent children
  • Setting up new holiday activity schemes
  • Residential activities
  • Projects using Applied Behavioural Analysis or other contested forms of coercive behavioural control
  • Schools, nurseries, early years settings, local authorities or NHS Trusts
  • Organisations with an income over £1 million
  • Work outside England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

How to apply

  1. Check the conditions on the programme page
  2. Watch the page in January 2027, when key dates for the 2027 round will be posted
  3. Submit an expression of interest when the 2027 round opens early in 2027

There is no waiting list for interested applicants.

Funded organisations are asked for a single report each year and an equalities monitoring form.

More like this

Other grants open to organisations like yours.