GrantRadar

Educational Opportunity Foundation

Main Fund – UK projects

The Educational Opportunity Foundation (formerly the British & Foreign School Society) funds new or pilot UK projects that reduce the disadvantage of care experienced young people under 25, including unaccompanied young refugees, through education and training. Grants are £30,000 to £105,000 per project over one to three years (up to £35,000 a year). There is one UK round a year: applications open 30 November 2026 and the Stage 1 deadline is 6 January 2027. In 2025, 25% of Stage 1 applicants went through to Stage 2 and 26% of those were funded.

Apply on the funder’s site
You could get
£30,000 – £105,000
Deadline
78 days left
6 January
Effort
Heavy
budgets, references, often several stages

Who can apply

  • UK registered charities with an income between £100,000 and £2.5 million in their most recently completed financial year, with at least three years of continuous accounts submitted to the relevant charity regulator
  • Charities must be financially sound and registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales, the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator or the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland
  • Annual grant payments cannot exceed 50% of the organisation's three-year average income
  • All young people supported must be under 26 and care experienced

What it funds

Projects which support care experienced young people (under the age of 25 and living in the UK), including unaccompanied young refugees, to achieve any of the following:

  • Improve attendance, engagement and attainment in school, alternative education or further education
  • Access and successfully complete higher education
  • Improve employability through training outside of the formal education system

new or pilot projects, or projects which have started in the past 12 months, funded for one to three years. The Foundation funds 25% to 100% of total project costs but prefers some matched funding, and funds overheads up to 20% of the total grant. Each project needs a main educational or training outcome similar to one in its UK outcome framework.

What it will not fund

  • Organisations whose primary purpose is fundraising
  • Long term projects
  • Services which are available through the state education system (including the Pupil Premium)
  • Summer camps
  • Bursaries, school fees or scholarships
  • Expeditions, volunteering trips and conferences
  • International travel
  • Projects where uniforms, transport or running costs are the main expense
  • Food and accommodation
  • Projects which are not designed specifically for the needs of care experienced young people

How to apply

  1. Applications open on 30 November 2026
  2. Submit a Stage 1 application on the online form, with a completed Foundation budget template, by 6 January 2027 (the form can be saved and finished within 30 days)
  3. If shortlisted, submit a Stage 2 application form, logframe and budget when invited by email
  4. Shortlisted Stage 2 applicants may be invited to an online discussion
  5. The Grants Committee makes final decisions on 14 April 2027

Word versions of both application forms, a sample budget and a sample logframe are on the page for planning. The online form link only works while applications are open.

Have ready

  • Stage 1 application form (online)
  • Completed Educational Opportunity Foundation budget template
  • Stage 2 (if invited): application form, logframe and budget

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