UK grants for sport and recreation

Funding for grassroots sport, physical activity, equipment and facilities for community clubs.

76 grants open now, each read from the funder’s own pages. More added as we read them.

John Bristow and Thomas Mason Trust
John Bristow and Thomas Mason Trust: grants for organisations
Amount not specified5 November 2026
Grants to organisations whose projects benefit residents of the area of benefit, the 1926 boundary of the Parish of Charlwood in Surrey, which includes Hookwood and Lowfield Heath; organisations outside the area can apply if the project benefits residents inside it. The Trust funds education, recreation and leisure facilities, the relief of people in need, and other charities that benefit residents; past grants have gone to the parish church, village halls, the primary school, sports facilities and play equipment. Trustees meet every other month.
- Community
- Education and Skills
- Sport and Recreation
Who can apply →
Brissenden Trust
Brissenden Trust funding
Amount not specifiedRolling — apply any time
One-off donations from the Brissenden Trust for projects taking place in Tenterden and St Michaels in Kent, in five categories: education, well-being, sport, community and not-for-profit. Both organisations and individuals can apply, through a short online form that takes about 20 minutes. There is no set grant size or deadline; applications are reviewed twice a year, in spring and autumn, and time-sensitive requests can be prioritised.
- Education and Skills
- Health and Wellbeing
- Sport and Recreation
Who can apply →
British Motor Sports Training Trust (British Motorsport Trust)
Safety Development Fund
Up to £300Rolling — apply any time
The British Motorsport Trust's Safety Development Fund gives grants to Motorsport UK Registered Clubs and other Motorsport UK Registered or Licensed organisations for additional or enhanced safety improvements that comply with Motorsport UK requirements. It covers four main strands: closed road event safety, venue safety and sustainability, rescue units and equipment, and recovery units and equipment. Applications are considered in batches about every four weeks; around 60 grants are approved in a typical year.
- Sport and Recreation
Who can apply →
The Dixie Educational Foundation
Dixie Educational Foundation Grants
Amount not specified19 October 2026
Small local grants from a 400-year-old Market Bosworth educational foundation for the educational benefit of young people under 25 living in Market Bosworth and nearby villages in Leicestershire. Both individuals under 25 and organisations or groups running activities for under-25s can apply, for education, sport, music, the arts or personal development, including regular or one-off events. Trustees meet in early March, June and November; applications must arrive before the 20th of the month before the meeting.
- Children and Young People
- Education and Skills
- Arts
Who can apply →
The J G Graves Charitable Trust
J G Graves Charitable Trust Grants
Amount not specified31 December 2026
Grants for charities, CICs and community groups whose work benefits the City of Sheffield, from the trust set up by John George Graves in 1930. Trustees prefer capital projects and special projects rather than topping up normal income, but also support 'seed corn' funding and running costs. A typical grant is £500 to £3,000, and the Trust rarely covers a project's whole cost unless it is modest. Applications are considered at quarterly trustees' meetings; the next closing date is 31 December 2026.
- Community
- Local
- Heritage
Who can apply →
The Lionel Abel-Smith Trust
The Lionel Abel-Smith Trust grants
Amount not specifiedRolling — apply any time
Grants from a local trust, formerly the Wendover Community Trust, set up in 1977 by Lionel Abel-Smith, Lord of the Manor of Wendover. It helps individuals, families and organisations in Wendover Parish and the Moor Park estate. Organisations such as schools, village halls, sports clubs and special-interest groups can apply for equipment, building repairs and improvements, sports facilities and environmental sustainability projects. Individuals can apply for essential needs, training and courses, disability and mobility aids, and help pursuing a talent. There is no minimum or maximum grant, and applications are accepted at any time through a short online form.
- Local
- Community
- Education and Skills
Who can apply →
Wasps Legends Charitable Foundation
Wasps Legends Small Grant
Up to £2,500Rolling — apply any time
Small grants, typically up to £2,500, from the charitable foundation of former Wasps rugby players, awarded case by case throughout the year at the Trustees' discretion. A charity can only apply if it is nominated by a member of Wasps Legends. The Foundation favours causes close to its members' hearts: rugby values and the rugby community, health and wellbeing, education, and causes with a clear connection to Wasps Legends members. Its larger Annual Grant (up to £25,000, reopening July 2027) and Event Grants are currently closed.
- Sport and Recreation
- Health and Wellbeing
- Education and Skills
Who can apply →
The PFC Trust
The PFC Trust General Grants
Amount not specified28 November 2026
A Hartlepool charity, set up by lottery winners Patrick and Frances Connolly, that funds individuals, groups and organisations whose work benefits the people of Hartlepool and the surrounding area. Applications must meet one of its charitable objects, which range from education, the arts, amateur sport and the environment to respite care, young people, older people and relief of hardship. It does not normally fund organisations with income over £250,000, and requests over £10,000 need a business plan. The current General Grants round is open from 1 October to 28 November 2026.
- Local
- Education and Skills
- Arts
Who can apply →
The Racing Foundation
Racing Foundation Small and Open Grants
Up to £30,000Rolling — apply any time
The Racing Foundation funds charitable projects that directly benefit the UK horseracing and Thoroughbred breeding industry: its people (welfare, health, poverty relief, education and training, diversity), equine welfare, and environmental, social and governance work. Small Grants go up to £30,000 and Open Grants from £30,000 upwards. Applications go through a three-stage process (online expression of interest, a fuller second-stage form, then a trustee decision) in three rounds a year. Applications that miss a deadline are carried forward to the next round.
- Health and Wellbeing
- Poverty
- Education and Skills
Who can apply →
GrantScape
East Coast Community Fund
£1,000 – £50,0003 February 2027
Ørsted's community fund for its Hornsea 1 and Race Bank offshore wind farms, run by GrantScape, for community and environmental projects in a coastal strip of the East Riding of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, from Bridlington down to the Wash. Small grants of £1,000 to £10,000 need no match funding; main grants of £10,001 to £50,000 need at least 20%. Capital and revenue costs can go in one application, and revenue can be funded for up to two years. There are two rounds a year; the next closes on 3 February 2027. A separate East Coast Skills Fund has its own criteria and dates.
- Community
- Environmental
- Sport and Recreation
Who can apply →
Flutter UK & Ireland, delivered by Sported
Cash4Clubs
Up to £2,0001 January 2027
Cash4Clubs gives unrestricted £2,000 grants (€2,000 in Ireland) to not-for-profit sports clubs and community organisations across the UK and Ireland that use sport for social purpose. It is funded by Flutter UK & Ireland, a sports betting and gaming company, so only organisations that work exclusively with adults aged 18 and over can apply: any junior members or under-18 activities make the whole organisation ineligible. Priority goes to groups in areas of high deprivation and those engaging under-represented adults. Applications are open until 5pm on 1 January 2027.
- Sport and Recreation
- Health and Wellbeing
- Community
Who can apply →
Horsham District Council
Section 106 Funding for Community Projects
Amount not specifiedRolling — apply any time
Horsham District Council passes on Section 106 money paid by developers as capital funding for community infrastructure, such as village hall improvements, new play equipment and sports changing facilities. Funds differ from area to area, and a project must be directly related to the development that generated the money and help mitigate its impact. There is no deadline: groups contact the council to check suitability and available funds, and are sent an application form if they qualify.
- Community
- Sport and Recreation
Who can apply →
East Cambridgeshire District Council
Section 106 funding for community facilities
Amount not specifiedRolling — apply any time
East Cambridgeshire District Council's capital grants from developer (Section 106) contributions, which not-for-profit community organisations and parish councils can apply for to create or improve community facilities whose need has arisen at least in part from new housing development. It covers community centres and village halls, multi-purpose sports and leisure centres, play facilities and open spaces. The amount depends on the S106 money available for each community, and can be up to 100% of project costs if enough is available, though match funding is encouraged.
- Community
- Sport and Recreation
- Environmental
Who can apply →
The LGBT+ Fund, powered by Consortium, with London Marathon Foundation
LGBT+ Fund: Get Active Fund
£5,000 – £50,0004 November 2026
A new two-year fund for UK-based LGBT+ led non-profit groups whose work regularly focuses on sport or physical activity, from football and hiking to dance, vogue and gardening. Groups can ask for £5,000 to £25,000 a year for one or two years (up to £50,000 over two years), for activity costs, subsidised places and core costs. It prioritises grassroots groups helping inactive LGBT+ people facing extra barriers to take part, and groups in under-funded regions. Applications can be written, by video or supported by phone; about 1 in 5 are expected to succeed. Closes 12 noon on 4 November 2026.
- Sport and Recreation
- Health and Wellbeing
Who can apply →
Norfolk Community Foundation
The Subs for Clubs Fund
Up to £1,000Rolling — apply any time
Grants of up to £1,000 for Norfolk clubs, groups and uniformed units to pay the subscriptions, travel and uniform/kit costs of young members whose families are struggling with the cost of living, so they can keep taking part in out-of-school sport, arts and uniformed activities. The guide is £100-£150 maximum per young person, and the young people must be identified when you apply. It is a rolling fund (£20,000 in total) that closes when the money is fully allocated.
- Children and Young People
- Cost of Living Crisis
- Sport and Recreation
Who can apply →
The Oakland Foundation
Oakland Foundation grants
Amount not specifiedRolling — apply any time
The Oakland Foundation, a Redditch-based charity sponsored by Oakland International, gives grants to established groups and organisations supporting disadvantaged children under 16 and their families in England and Wales. It funds projects in education, health and nutrition, and sport, and prioritises areas where Oakland International is part of the community (Redditch, Bardon, Corby, Knottingley and Skelmersdale). It acts as a seed funder for launching, growing or strengthening projects and does not fund staff wages, rent or utilities. Applications are made online at any time and decided at regular trustee meetings.
- Children and Young People
- Education and Skills
- Health and Wellbeing
Who can apply →
FCC Communities Foundation
FCC Community Action Fund
£10,000 – £100,00018 November 2026
Landfill Communities Fund grants of £10,000 to £100,000 from FCC Communities Foundation (funded by FCC Environment) for capital improvements to public amenities such as village halls, community centres, play areas, sports facilities, parks and nature reserves, or for biodiversity conservation, sited within 10 miles of an eligible FCC Environment waste site in England. The total project cost must not exceed £250,000, and applicants must find a Contributing Third Party to pay 10.75% of the grant. The current round (2026-4) closes at 5pm on 18 November 2026.
- Community
- Environmental
- Sport and Recreation
Who can apply →
The Shepherd Street Trust
Shepherd Street Trust Grants
Amount not specified2 November 2026
A Preston charity dating from 1876 that gives grants to help children and young people under 21 living within 50 miles of Preston Town Hall who are in need, hardship or distress. It funds both groups and organisations working with under-21s (equipment, activities, trips, play areas and similar) and individual young people (education, training, tools and equipment), on separate postal application forms. Requests of £500 and over go to Trustee meetings with published deadlines (next 2 November 2026); requests under £500 are decided within about 4 weeks.
- Children and Young People
- Education and Skills
- Sport and Recreation
Who can apply →
Football Foundation
Pavilion & Clubhouse Grants (Changing Pavilions & Clubhouses)
Amount not specifiedRolling — apply any time
Football Foundation capital grants for grassroots football sites in England to refurbish, modernise or build new or replacement changing rooms, toilets and clubhouses. Applications are accepted at any time through the Foundation's online portal, but applicants must speak to their County FA or Foundation Delivery Manager first and supply a substantial technical pack (drawings, specification, two quotes, planning, tenure). The Foundation's pages refer to grants up to £25,000 and over £25,000 up to £100,000 (larger grants need longer tenure and community-engagement evidence), with partnership funding expected.
- Sport and Recreation
- Community
Who can apply →
UK Research and Innovation (AHRC)
Attendance and engagement at UK sporting, cultural and heritage sites
£1,100,000 – £1,320,0001 December 2026
AHRC and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) fund one research project to develop data-intensive ways of measuring attendance and engagement at unticketed cultural, heritage and sporting events, activities and locations. It builds on a DCMS pilot that used mobile app, social media, activity and aerial data, and must deliver a working tool deployed in at least one DCMS sector that captures how people engage as well as how many attend. The project lead must be employed by a UK research organisation eligible for UKRI funding. The project can cost £1.1 million to £1.32 million full economic cost, of which UKRI pays 80%, starting on 1 May 2027 for up to 34 months.
- Heritage
- Sport and Recreation
Who can apply →
UK Research and Innovation (AHRC)
Long-term cultural and sporting events legacy
£1,100,000 – £1,320,0001 December 2026
AHRC and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) fund one research project to track the long-term impact and legacy of major UK sporting and cultural events, running a live experimental evaluation that fills gaps in existing methods. One case study must be the 2027 Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes Grands Départs, with baselines set before the event and research continuing for two years after it. The project lead must be employed by a UK research organisation eligible for UKRI funding, though practitioners and evaluation experts without academic posts are welcome. The project can cost £1.1 million to £1.32 million full economic cost, of which UKRI pays 80%, starting on 1 May 2027 for up to 34 months.
- Sport and Recreation
- Arts
Who can apply →
Northumberland County Council
S106 Housing Developer Fund (Sport and Play)
Amount not specifiedRolling — apply any time
Northumberland County Council's S106 Housing Developer Fund uses pooled housing-developer contributions to give capital grants for children's play areas, outdoor sports facilities and (in some areas) indoor sport and recreation facilities. It only covers projects in the former Tynedale area, South East Northumberland and parts of North Northumberland, and depends on money being available in that area. Applicants must be legally constituted not-for-profit organisations such as parish and town councils, community groups, residents' associations, and sports clubs or schools that provide community use. Applications are scored by an S106 panel and grants are paid in arrears when the project is complete.
- Sport and Recreation
- Children and Young People
- Community
Who can apply →
GrantScape (on behalf of Ørsted)
Hornsea 3 Community Fund
£500 – £75,0002 December 2026
Ørsted's community benefit fund for its Hornsea 3 offshore wind farm, run by GrantScape, for communities along a 5km coastal strip from the Lincolnshire/Norfolk boundary to just south of Lowestoft and a 5km zone along the onshore cable route to the grid. Small grants of £500-£5,000 (no match funding) and main grants of £5,001-£75,000 (20% match funding) for community buildings, activities and services, environmental and open-space projects, and sport, recreation and play. There are two closing dates a year; about £500,000 a year goes through the main fund, with separate Skills and Legacy Funds.
- Community
- Environmental
- Sport and Recreation
Who can apply →
London Marathon Foundation
Active Spaces Fund
£10,000 – £80,000Rolling — apply any time
London Marathon Foundation's Active Spaces Fund pays for projects in London that improve and activate spaces, places and facilities so that the least active children, young people and underserved groups can lead active and healthy lives. Organisations can apply for £10,000 to £80,000 towards capital and/or revenue project costs; more than £80,000 is by invitation only after contacting the Foundation first. Applications are two-stage: an expression of interest accepted at any time, then (if invited) a full application to one of four rounds a year.
- Sport and Recreation
- Children and Young People
- Health and Wellbeing
Who can apply →
Lee Valley Regional Park Authority
Active Communities Grant Scheme and Community Access Fund
Up to £5,000Rolling — apply any time
Lee Valley Regional Park Authority runs two schemes for not-for-profit groups based in London, Essex or Hertfordshire. The Active Communities Grant Scheme gives up to £5,000 (at least 50% match funding needed) for projects of 12 weeks to 12 months that use physical activity at the park's venues and green spaces to benefit marginalised communities. The Community Access Fund gives free access to, or free travel to, park venues and activities (typically up to £1,000 of activity costs), and schools with 20% or more pupil premium can get a transport bursary. Both must fit the Authority's Sport and Active Recreation strategy.
- Sport and Recreation
- Health and Wellbeing
- Community
Who can apply →
Inspire Hounslow
Inspire Hounslow Large Grant Scheme
£1,500 – £30,0008 January 2027
Inspire Hounslow is a Hounslow-based grant-giving charity whose Large Grant Scheme funds projects of £1,500 to £30,000 per project, per year, that operate within the London Borough of Hounslow and benefit people who live, work or study there. It prioritises children and young people up to age 25 and communities in the borough's Equality Opportunity Areas, while also supporting projects that strengthen the wider community. Applications are made online against fixed deadlines ahead of three board meetings a year; a separate Small Grant Scheme (£500 to £1,500) has monthly deadlines.
- Children and Young People
- Community
- Education and Skills
Who can apply →
Huntingdon Freemen's Trust
Huntingdon Freemen's Trust grants
Up to £1,200Rolling — apply any time
Huntingdon Freemen's Trust gives grants to individuals, students, schools, groups and organisations based in or serving the area covered by Huntingdon Town Council (Huntingdon Town, Oxmoor, Hartford, Sapley, Stukeley Meadows and Hinchingbrooke Park). For local groups it funds equipment, project costs, training, competitions, trips and recreational activities in sports, hobbies and the arts, and it is currently prioritising early years and families, and mental health and wellbeing. Trustees meet monthly except August; requests over £10,000 are heard only in January and July.
- Community
- Sport and Recreation
- Arts
Who can apply →
Hays Travel Foundation
Hays Travel Foundation Charity Funding
Amount not specifiedRolling — apply any time
The Hays Travel Foundation (registered charity 1161373), set up in 2015 by Hays Travel, gives grants to registered charities and CICs whose projects help young people up to age 25 develop in education, prevention of poverty, health, arts, culture or sport. Projects must operate in, or have an impact on, an area where Hays Travel has a branch. Grants have ranged from £1,000 to £14,000, with an average of about £4,500 last year, and there is no stated maximum. Applications are made online at any time.
- Children and Young People
- Education and Skills
- Poverty
Who can apply →
Harborough District Council
Section 106 Grant Fund
Up to £24,999Rolling — apply any time
Harborough District Council distributes developer contributions secured through Section 106 planning agreements as capital grants for community facilities, open spaces and sports provision in Harborough District. Each pot of S106 money is tied to a particular parish and to the wording of its legal agreement, so what a group can apply for depends on the funding currently available for its parish (listed in the council's Excel 'available funding' document). Applications are taken all year: requests under £25,000 go to an officer panel that meets every six weeks, and requests of £25,000 or more go to Cabinet.
- Community
- Sport and Recreation
- Environmental
Who can apply →
London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham
Small Grants Programme
£100 – £20,00030 November 2026
Hammersmith & Fulham Council's Small Grants Fund, part of its Third Sector Investment Programme, gives £100 to £10,000 to local voluntary and community sector organisations delivering activities, services and projects for H&F residents. Organisations delivering services specifically for refugees and asylum seekers can apply for £1,000 to £20,000 through the Supporting Vulnerable Communities Grant, using the same online form. Applications open 1 October to 30 November 2026 (the page says '31 November') and again 1 January to 15 February 2027. The council especially wants to support groups it does not currently fund.
- Community
- Local
- Children and Young People
Who can apply →

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