GrantRadar

Cambridgeshire Community Foundation

Cambridge In Need

Cambridge In Need, managed by Cambridgeshire Community Foundation, gives non-profit organisations working in the City of Cambridge (and within 5km of its centre) grants of £5,000 to £20,000 in a single year, or up to £30,000 over three years, to reduce financial need, hardship or distress. There is one deadline a year, 1 May; applications re-open on 2 February 2027. The fund is significantly oversubscribed and capital costs will be considered.

Apply on the funder’s site
You could get
£5,000 – £30,000
Deadline
195 days left
1 May
Effort
Moderate
full application with documents

Who can apply

  • Community-focused, not-for-profit organisations, which must be legally registered if their income is above £5,000: registered, exempt and excepted charities; CIOs; religious organisations if the project benefits the wider community and has no religious content; parish and town councils, village halls and parochial church councils; CICs, social enterprises and companies limited by guarantee (established and running for at least one year, with additional eligibility criteria); co-operatives and community benefit societies; schools; and sports clubs that are CASCs, affiliated to a national governing body or have income under £5,000
  • National organisations can apply for projects delivered locally if the funding is restricted to the area of benefit
  • Organisations need a signed governing document with a not-for-profit and dissolution clause, and three independent, unconnected committee members/trustees
  • Organisations must work in the City of Cambridge and its surrounding area within a 5km radius of its centre; priority is given to organisations based in Cambridgeshire

What it funds

Projects reducing financial need, hardship or distress of people in need in Cambridge. Priority goes to applications showing most, if not all, of:

  • A sustainable approach to poverty reduction that builds long-term capacity and resilience while relieving short-term need
  • Support for parents and children in need, including early years education
  • Support for particularly disadvantaged and under-served groups
  • Tangible outcomes that would not be possible without the funding (e.g. a one-off project otherwise unaffordable)

Capital costs will be considered.

The fund seeks to fund applications at the full amount requested where possible.

What it will not fund

  • Organisations working outside the City of Cambridge and the area within 5km of its centre
  • Organisations that have received more than three years of funding or more than £30,000 in total from the fund are likely to be deprioritised
  • Organisation types not listed in the Foundation's eligibility guidance, or projects not charitable in focus
  • Activities or projects which have already taken place
  • Sponsored events or fundraising activities
  • Debt or loans
  • Grant-making bodies or activities (usually)
  • Improvements to land or buildings not open to the general public at convenient hours
  • Projects promoting political activities or lobbying
  • The practice of religion or projects that promote religion or a belief system
  • Animal welfare projects
  • Overseas travel
  • Statutory obligations (activities that replace government funding)

How to apply

  1. Check your organisation and project are eligible using the Foundation's Application guidance page
  2. Prepare the required supporting documents
  3. Complete the online general application form for the summer round (linked from the fund page), stating Cambridge In Need as your preferred fund
  4. Submit the form and documents between 2 February and 11:59am on 1 May 2027
  5. The Grants Team may phone you for an assessment call; an internal panel and then the fund panel decide, and outcomes are sent by email
  6. Successful applicants sign and return the grant offer letter (two signatures) and complete an end-of-project report online

Each round has its own form; an unfinished form is lost when the round closes. The Foundation recommends only one application per round via the general form.

The fund panel may fund fully or partially, and an application may be passed to other Foundation funds.

Have ready

  • Signed governing document (e.g. constitution or articles of association) confirming not-for-profit status and containing a dissolution clause
  • Accounts for the past year (small unincorporated groups may give an income and expenditure statement; organisations under a year old give income and expenditure to date)
  • Bank statement or paying-in slip from the last 3 months showing bank name and logo, account name, sort code and account number (screenshots not accepted)
  • Names of three independent/unconnected management committee members, trustees or directors, and two unconnected cheque signatories
  • Three quotes for any capital item or equipment costing over £500
  • CICs: CIC 36 form (registered in last 12 months) or latest CIC 34 annual report
  • Co-operatives/community benefit societies: FCA registration form or latest AR30
  • Evidence of a long-term lease if funding is for land or a building you do not own

Documents must be submitted with the application by the deadline or it may be declined; supporting documents sent to the Foundation in the last two years need not be resent unless there have been significant changes. Safeguarding and equality policies need not be uploaded but you must con…

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