BBC Children in Need Main Grant Programme

Grants for not-for-profit organisations that are working with disadvantaged children and young people aged up to 18 years and living in the UK.

Current Status
Open for Applications
Maximum value:
£ 100,000
Objectives of Fund
The Trust distributes the funds raised each year as grants to organisations that work with disadvantaged children and young people, under the age of 18, living in the UK.

Value Notes
Grants of over £10,000 per year are available to support projects for up to three years. The average grant is likely to be around £30,000 per year.

Applications cannot be made for more than £40,000 per year.

It is highly unlikely that grants exceeding £100,000 in total for three years will be awarded.

Who Can Apply
Registered not-for-profit organisations who work with disadvantaged children and young people of 18 years and under living in the UK, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands are eligible to apply.

The following organisations can apply:

Community interest companies (CIC)
Companies limited by guarantee (CLG) including social enterprises
Housing associations
Industrial and provident community benefit society
Registered charities
Religious institution
Special schools (These are provisions for children with learning difficulties or disabilities which cannot be met within a mainstream setting.)
Applicants must be able to state why they are best placed to make a difference to the lives of disadvantaged children and young people, including:

Their well-established links with young people.
The skills and expertise they have for the work they are requesting funding for.
Their track record delivering the work they are requesting funding for. This is especially important for applicants for the Main Grants Programme.
How they work alongside other organisations in their local community.
To be eligible, applicants must

Have a governing body, such as a Board of Trustees, with at least three members.
Be able to provide a set of their most recent signed accounts in their organisation’s name.
Restrictions
Funding is not available for the following:

Schools. academies, universities, pubic referral units (PRU) or statutory educational establishments.
Work which statutory bodies (such as schools or local authorities) have a duty to fund.
Educational institutions including schools, universities, pupil referral units. The only exception is special schools. (Refer to the programme’s A–Z Guidance.)
Local government, prisons or NHS bodies.
Companies limited by shares.
Capital or building projects.
Projects which promote religion.
Trips or projects abroad.
Medical treatment or research.
Pregnancy testing or advice, information or counselling on pregnancy choices.
Awareness-raising work, except where it is targeted at those children or young people most at risk.
Bursaries, sponsored places, fees or equivalent.
Holidays where there is little or no project involvement.
Political activity or, to party political organisations or for direct lobbying.
Individuals.
To be passed on to other organisations.
General appeals or endowment funds.
Help with budget shortfalls or debt repayments.
Retrospective funding (projects where the grant expenditure is due to start before the grant award date).
Projects unable to start within 12 months of the grant award date.
Unspecified expenditure.
Fixed equipment and vehicles.
Non-Fixed equipment totalling over £20,000 (eg play/sensory equipment).
Work delivered outside the UK.
Work with young people over the age of 18 years.
Contribution to reserves.
Staff redundancy or redeployment.
Investments.
Pension liabilities and/or contributions to large number of staff's pension.
Feasibility studies or scoping work.
Medical treatment or research.
This is not an exhaustive list and applicants should check further restrictions on the BBC Children in Need website.

Eligible Expenditure
Funding is available to organisations that are supporting children and young people of 18 years and under who are experiencing disadvantage through:

Illness, distress, abuse or neglect.
Any kind of disability.
Behavioural or psychological difficulties.
Living in poverty or situations of deprivation.
The funding is for projects that make differences in children’s lives that help prevent or overcome the effects of the disadvantages they face. Projects achieve these differences by either working directly with children or seeking to improve their social and physical environments.

Applicants must have a clear plan for the activities and the differences these activities make for children and young people.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the funder has temporarily broadened the types of applications it is accepting. Currently funding is being offered that can be used more flexibly than usual.

Applications are encouraged for:

Project delivery (including staffing and salary costs)
Creative solutions to deliver much needed services
Organisational costs to support stability and adaptation. (Including the day-to-day running costs of an organisation as opposed to specific project costs)
All applications will have to show how this funding will make a difference to children and young people’s lives during this crisis.

Applications are not limited to one specific project and a request can be made for organisational running costs. The funder is committed to supporting voluntary groups with these types of grants.

How To Apply
The Main Grants 2021 programme has reopened for applications and will close at 11.30am on 23 August 2021 for decisions in late January 2022.

The online application form can be found on the BBC Children in Need website. Applicants should refer to the A-Z Guidance document before making an application.

Once the deadline has passed, the application form will be deactivated until the next round opens.

For more information visit https://www.bbcchildreninneed.co.uk/grants/apply/