Masonic Charitable Foundation

Charity Grants (Small and Large Grants)

The Freemasons' Charity's rolling Charity Grants programme funds registered charities in England and Wales (and Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man) working with three priority groups: children aged 0-5 in poverty or neglect, children and young people affected by domestic abuse, and children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. Small Grants of £1,000-£5,000 a year for up to three years are unrestricted, for charities with income of £25,000-£500,000; Large Grants of usually £10,000-£60,000 in total over one to three years are for specific projects at charities with income of £500,000-£5 million. Applicants start with an eligibility quiz and short expression of interest, and only invited charities make a full application; no connection to a Freemason is needed.

Apply on the funder’s site

You could get: £1,000 – £60,000; no fixed round
Deadline: Rolling; apply any time
Effort: Moderate; full application with documents

Who can apply

Charities registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales, or the relevant central registry of Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man (exempt charities, CICs, social enterprises and community interest groups are not eligible), whose beneficiaries are all in England, Wales, Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man and fall within one priority group: Early Years (0-5), children and young people affected by domestic abuse (0-18, or up to 25 with SEND), or children and young people with SEND (0-25)
Must have at least one year of independently examined or audited accounts published on the Charity Commission website for the charity number used (merged charities need one year as the merged body)
Income from the latest published accounts decides the tier: £25,000-£499,999 for a Small Grant, £500,000-£5 million for a Large Grant
Must have its own bank account
Branches may apply under a head office's charity number only with written permission, and only one application per charity number is accepted
Previous grantees must wait two years after their grant ended, and unsuccessful applicants one year after their last expression of interest
No Freemason connection is needed

What it funds

Aim: supporting disadvantaged children and young people in England and Wales through charities working with one of three priority groups:

Early Years (ages 0-5), with a focus on poverty and neglect: social and learning opportunities, urgent practical support such as baby banks, and targeted interventions for caregivers with demonstrable outcomes for children
Children and young people affected by domestic abuse (up to 18, or 25 with SEND): for example counselling and therapeutic support, healthy relationships work, and other refuge or community-based children and young people's services, including targeted preventative approaches
Children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (up to 25): early intervention, accessible social, leisure and education opportunities, and specialist information and advice on legal rights, benefits and Education, Health and Care Plans
Family or carer support, as long as the ultimate beneficiaries are the children and young people
Small Grants: unrestricted funding that does not have to be used on a specific purpose
Large Grants: specific projects with defined goals and budgets, for example salaries, equipment, training, monitoring and administration, plus a proportion of overheads; new and pilot projects are funded

early years settings (nurseries, pre-schools) can apply if actively working with children in the Early Years priority group

Small Grants are £1,000-£5,000 per year for up to three years and must not exceed 20% of the charity's total income averaged over the past two years; Large Grants usually £10,000-£60,000 in total over one to three years, with a preference for multi-year funding (one-year grants only in exceptional circumstances such as pilots)

What it will not fund

Arts and heritage, unless as a vehicle to specifically engage and support beneficiaries within the priority target groups
Environment, unless as a vehicle to specifically engage and support beneficiaries within the priority target groups
Animal welfare, unless as a vehicle to specifically engage and support beneficiaries within the priority target groups
Statutory obligations
Routine delivery of the National Curriculum in schools
The sole aim of promoting civil liberties and human rights
Political or lobbying activities
Contributions towards new build and/or large scale capital projects
Capital repairs and/or maintenance of existing buildings
Hospital equipment, such as MRI scanners
The promotion of any religious doctrine
Contributions to general appeals
Retrospective funding
Academic research
Preventative domestic abuse work that is open to all children and young people
SEND applications where needs are best characterised as chronic mental health or illness such as cancer or heart disease
Applications from: current Small or Large grant holders; charities whose previous grant ended less than 2 years ago; charities that submitted an expression of interest in the last 12 months; umbrella organisations and third parties coordinating funds for others; social enterprises, CICs, community interest groups and exempt charities; hospices (see the Hospice UK partnership); schools, nurseries and hospitals for routine delivery to non-priority groups; churches or other religious institutions; individuals; organisations whose core mission involves political or lobbying activity

How to apply

Read the priorities and full eligibility guidelines
Take the online eligibility quiz on the Apply for a grant page
Submit the short online Small Grant or Large Grant expression of interest, choosing the one priority group that best describes the beneficiaries
The Charity Grants Team reviews the expression of interest and aims to respond within 2 weeks
Large Grants only: shortlisted charities are invited to a short virtual meeting to discuss the project, then some are invited to the final stage
If invited, submit the full application within 4 weeks of the invitation (preview the forms in the Small and Large Grant application guidance)
Staff assess the application with due diligence on finance and governance and feedback from the local Masonic Province; the Charity Grants Committee makes the final decision

there are no deadlines; both programmes run on a rolling basis

around 1,200 expressions of interest are received a year and around 150 charities are funded; about 40% of final applications succeed

Have ready

Budget breakdown of all costs on the charity's budget template (Large Grants, at the final application stage)
Written permission from the head office (if applying under a larger or national charity's number)
Proof of BACS bank details (before payment is authorised)

the full application documents are set out in the Small and Large Grant application guidance, which the charity hosts on a Salesforce file link we could not open

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