The National Lottery Community Fund – Growing Great Ideas Programme (UK)

25 Jan 2021 by Libby Mahoney

The National Lottery Community Fund’s Growing Great Ideas Fund has £25 million available to fund projects that support long-term societal change.  The Growing Great Ideas programme is part of the UK Portfolio. The UK Portfolio is where the National Lottery Community Fund explores new approaches, experiments with how to do things differently, and look to fund work that is more future focused.

The Growing Great Ideas Fund wants to invest in different combinations of people, communities, networks and organisations over the long term that demonstrate an ability to seed and grow alternative systems, develop, and test new ways of building a stronger civil society, and to learn and adapt as they go.

This could involve developing new ideas on how the economy could work or how society could be organised. Grants of up to £150,000 are available.  Groups, networks, or partnerships, etc can apply for grants of up to £150,000.

Lead organisations need to be a:

  • Registered charity
  • Community interest company
  • Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO)
  • Community benefit society
  • Co-operative society (if it has a not-for-profit clause)
  • Voluntary or community organisation
  • Statutory body (including town, parish and community councils) – They can be part of the initiative but not lead it
  • Company limited by guarantee (if it has a not-for-profit clause).

The minimum length for projects is two years. Funding can be available for up to ten years in some circumstances.

Applications can be submitted on an ongoing basis.

For more information click here.