The 1989 Willan Charitable Trust

Grants are available to support core and project costs, and will generally range from £1000 to £10,000; the Fund aims to prioritise projects for which a Willan grant will represent a significant contribution to delivery of the work.

The Fund may also consider applications for core and unrestricted grants of up to £20,000, £10,000 per year for two years, and other continuation funding on an annual basis, where there is a clear link to an area of high deprivation and a compelling case for funding is presented in the application.

Organisations such as CICs, Limited Companies and social enterprises may not apply, unless they are working in partnership with a registered charity, which will act as the lead organisation and apply on their behalf.

Examples of work that the 1989 Willan Charitable Trust Fund considers include:

• Core costs of organisations meeting the needs of communities experiencing high levels of deprivation.
• Capital and refurbishment costs for community buildings.
• Projects and Self-help initiatives that improve local quality of life.
• Services for young people that address educational needs or offer diversion from crime and anti-social behaviour.
• Projects assisting local communities affected by crime and anti-social behaviour.
• Art projects that help tackle deprivation or improve local quality of life.
• The work of youth organisations and, in particular, the Sea Cadets, Scouts, Guides, Boys’ Brigades and other uniformed organisations. Grants will not normally exceed £1,500.
• Projects that draw on the region’s rich maritime tradition to deliver improvements in local quality of life or address deprivation.
• Gap year voluntary work through Project Trust. Grants are limited to a maximum of £500 towards expenses in undertaking a voluntary placement. Applicants must normally reside in the North East region and applications should be made through Project Trust.

The Fund will tend to weight its support towards local registered charities, including those operating as branches of national charities. The preference is for charities with income of less than £1.5m, and based in North East England, but applications from national charities with an income under £1.5m are welcomed for projects that solely benefit North East England.

Applicants should provide evidence that they are well placed to meet identified needs within the region, indicating why support from local funders is essential.

Applicants with more than six months’ running costs in reserve will not usually be considered for a grant, unless the application demonstrates that funding the project from reserves will reduce them to an imprudent level.

In addition to standard Community Foundation exclusions, the Fund will not normally consider grants for:

• trips abroad
• individuals, except Project Trust applications from residents of the benefit area
• projects focused on heritage and the environment, scientific and/or medical research, unless these address deprivation and/or enrich local communities, improving local quality of life.

To make an application, please click here

The Fund Advisory Panel meets in March, June, September and December. Applications will be considered at the next scheduled meeting, provided they are received by the 15th of the preceding month. However, applicants are encouraged to submit their applications as early as possible to ensure they are considered at the next available meeting.

All applicants to the 1989 Willan Charitable Trust Fund are contacted with the outcome of their application.