Small Grants Scheme

The Small Grants Scheme is restricted for the relief of those in need due to age, ill health, disability, financial hardship, or other disadvantage. Disadvantage can exist within a geographical area, a section of the community, or both.

Unfortunately, the scheme is currently only open to UK registered charities.

The Small Grants Scheme is for charities whose work aligns with our charitable objectives above in one or more of the London boroughs of Hackney, Lewisham, Southwark, or Tower Hamlets. 

Most of our grants will be for community-based charities exclusively delivering in these key boroughs. However, we know that disadvantage does not always end neatly at borough boundaries. You may be eligible if you can demonstrate that most of your work and beneficiaries are in one or more of our key boroughs and a smaller proportion of your work is in a neighbouring borough(s). International, national, or regional charities are not eligible for our Small Grants Scheme.

We fund a wide range of projects and organisations that meet our charitable objectives outlined above, reaching people of all ages and in a wide range of circumstances. However, following a recent review, we have identified a gap in applications for charities supporting older people and we actively encourage applications from these charities. By older people we mean people of retirement age and above. If your project does not work with older people, we still welcome your application. 

We will not support applications for funding to cover running costs of older people's accommodation. We will not fund your organisation if you have guaranteed a liability of another organisation, for example if you have guaranteed that another charity will re-pay a loan. We also do not fund capital projects, (for example building or major renovation works). We will not consider applications where the request is to support religious or political promotion and/or activities.

Yes, provided your charitable activities are restricted to one or more of our key boroughs AND your charitable objectives as worded in your governing document are no wider than those of our small grants scheme, namely for the relief of those in need due to age, ill health, disability, financial hardship, or other disadvantage.

For one-off grants, we award between £500 and £5,000. For multi-year funding (up to three years), the total amount you can apply for, i.e. the maximum aggregate amount, is £9,000. Please see the FAQ below about your charity's income.

We do not award grants exceeding 5% of a charity’s annual income. For instance, if your charity’s annual income is £10,000, the maximum grant we will consider will be £500 per year. 

If your total request is for £3,000 or more, we will arrange a meeting or a visit. These meetings are very informal, and they are a chance for staff and volunteers from the Merchant Taylors’ Company to find out more about what you do, your organisation's aspirations and vision. It is also a great opportunity for you to ask us questions. We normally meet online but we may also visit you. For further information about the Company please click on this link Merchant Taylors' or for more information on what to expect from a visit, please see this video. 

To apply please use this link: Merchant Taylors' Grant Application Form . If you are applying for a restricted grant you will need to provide a budget for each year you have requested funding, showing all income and expenditure. Remember to include any pending grant decisions and to break down your project costs using a full cost recovery model. Full cost recovery means that you include the direct expenditure for your project and a proportion of indirect costs you need to deliver the project such as rent, utilities and support staff. We have provided a budget template that you may want to use: Budget Template. If you want to use this template please download and and save it on your computer before completing it. If you are applying for unrestricted funding, you do not need to submit a budget.

We look at your latest annual accounts that you have filed with the Charity Commission. If you are applying for restricted funding, we will also look at the budget you have submitted, (see FAQ above). If we feel we need further information we may request to see your latest management accounts.

Your named contact will receive an automated email with a copy of your completed application. This will not include the budget that you have submitted. Please keep all correspondence and documents, including budgets safe because you will need them to answer any queries we may have and to write your end of funding report if your application is successful.

 We may reject applications because they do not meet our eligibility criteria, there is inconsistent or incomplete information, or the impact of the proposal and financial information does not appear to be strong. Applications may be also rejected because our scheme is oversubscribed. If your application is rejected, we will let you know but regretfully, as we are a small staff team, we will be unable to provide individual feedback.

For one off funding requests under £3,000 you can expect a decision in March 2026 which is two months after the grant window closes at 5pm on the 31^st of December 2025. For applications £3,000 and over and multi-year applications the decision will be made in May 2026 which is five months after the grant window closes at 5pm on the 31^st of December 2025.

You will receive a grant notification email with terms and conditions to accept before we can pay your grant. 

For all queries relating to our Small Grants Scheme please email: charities@merchant-taylors.co.uk.  If you get in touch, please help us to deal with your query by including your registered charity number in your email. To find out more about the Merchant Taylors’ Company please click here Merchant Taylors'.

The Merchant Taylors’ Foundation seeks to continually improve our grant schemes. Should you decide to submit an application, you will have the opportunity to provide us with feedback by completing a brief survey.