Apply Now: Wimbledon Foundation Community Fund (United Kingdom)

Deadline: 28-Oct-26

The Wimbledon Foundation Community Fund is inviting applications from local organisations seeking single-year or multi-year grants to address financial insecurity, mental health, and digital inclusion among disadvantaged residents of Merton and Wandsworth. Since its launch in 2014, the fund has awarded more than £2.6 million through 359 grants, benefiting over 50,000 local people across the two London boroughs. The fund is managed by The London Community Foundation and aims to strengthen local communities by addressing social disadvantage. The Wimbledon Foundation Community Fund supports organisations working to improve the lives of disadvantaged residents in Merton and Wandsworth. The current funding round offers both single-year and multi-year grants. The multi-year option was introduced in response to research highlighting local needs and the financial pressures affecting the voluntary sector. Funding is intended to support organisations addressing key challenges affecting local communities, particularly financial insecurity, mental health and wellbeing, and digital exclusion. Organisations can apply for up to £10,000 per year.

The maximum funding available is:

Both single-year and multi-year funding are available, subject to the relevant eligibility requirements. Applicants must focus on at least one of the fund’s three priority themes: Projects should demonstrate how they will benefit disadvantaged residents in Merton or Wandsworth. Projects can address a range of local needs within the fund’s priority themes.

Examples include:

The fund welcomes applications from organisations supporting disadvantaged and underrepresented groups.

This includes organisations working with:

Applicants should demonstrate a clear understanding of the needs of the communities they serve. Single-year grants are available to organisations delivering work that benefits residents of Merton or Wandsworth. Unlike the multi-year funding option, organisations do not necessarily need to be registered in either borough, provided they have a track record of delivering work that benefits residents of Merton or Wandsworth. Organisations can apply for up to £10,000 for a single-year grant. Multi-year grants provide funding for up to three years, with a maximum of £10,000 per year and £30,000 in total. The multi-year option is available exclusively to organisations registered in Merton or Wandsworth. The introduction of multi-year funding reflects research into local needs and the economic pressures experienced by voluntary sector organisations. Both core costs and project costs are eligible for funding. This gives organisations flexibility to request support for costs associated with delivering their work, provided those costs fall within the fund’s eligibility requirements. Applicants should clearly explain how the requested funding will help deliver outcomes for disadvantaged residents. The fund encourages applicants to include matched funding or contributions from other sources. While the programme welcomes applications that demonstrate additional financial support, applicants should clearly explain the wider funding available for their proposed work and how different contributions will support the project. The fund does not support certain types of expenditure.

The following are not eligible:

Applicants should ensure that their proposed budget focuses on eligible core or project costs rather than excluded expenditure. Eligible applicants must be not-for-profit organisations with appropriate legal structures, governance arrangements, and safeguarding policies. For multi-year funding, organisations must be registered in Merton or Wandsworth. For single-year grants, organisations can apply if they have a track record of delivering work that benefits residents of Merton or Wandsworth. Applicants must have appropriate organisational arrangements in place.

Eligible organisations should:

Certain organisations are excluded from the fund.

Ineligible applicants include:

Organisations should confirm that their legal and organisational structure meets the fund’s requirements before applying. The Wimbledon Foundation Community Fund focuses on residents of two London boroughs: Single-year funding is available to organisations delivering work that benefits residents in these boroughs. Multi-year funding is restricted to organisations registered in Merton or Wandsworth. Applicants should clearly demonstrate the local need their organisation is addressing and explain how the proposed work aligns with one or more of the fund’s three priority themes.

A strong application should explain:

Applicants seeking multi-year funding should also demonstrate that their organisation is registered in Merton or Wandsworth. The Wimbledon Foundation Community Fund provides grants to organisations addressing social disadvantage among residents of Merton and Wandsworth. Organisations can apply for up to £10,000 per year, with single-year grants of up to £10,000 and three-year grants of up to £30,000. The three priority areas are financial insecurity and the cost of living, mental health and wellbeing, and digital inclusion. Yes. The current round offers grants of up to three years, with funding of up to £10,000 per year. Multi-year grants are available exclusively to organisations registered in Merton or Wandsworth. Single-year grants are open to organisations that deliver work benefiting residents of Merton or Wandsworth and have a track record of delivering work in these boroughs. Yes. Both core costs and project costs are eligible. No. Capital costs are not eligible for funding. No. One-off and annual events are not eligible for funding. Yes. The fund encourages applications that include matched funding or contributions from other sources. The fund welcomes work supporting groups including Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, disability groups, LGBTQIA+ individuals, young people, people not in education, employment or t