Arts and culture
Browse our list of funders that specialise in arts and culture
As with any charitable project, it’s worth considering the funders that will fund a wide variety of projects.
This page was last updated 02/04/2024. Spotted an error? Please let us know.
Idlewild Trust – We want to improve opportunities for professionals working creatively in the arts at an early stage in their careers.
We’re interested in programmes that encourage and nurture the talent of professional musicians, dancers, actors, writers and artists in the performing, fine and applied arts at an early stage in their careers. Organisations applying should be UK Registered Charities in the arts sector, delivering high-quality and professional work with a strong track record. Programmes should be for talented early-stage professionals with existing training or very relevant experience.
Idlewild Trust also funds programmes for other early-stage professionals working creatively within the arts including composers, curators and theatre-makers (directors, designers, producers, writers and choreographers).
We give grants of up to £5,000. You can apply for 100% of the project costs or apply for funding towards a project where there might be multiple funding sources.
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Finnis Scott Foundation – The Finnis Scott Foundation’s present policy is to focus grant-making on the areas of horticulture and plant sciences, as well as the exhibition, conservation and study of art. By so doing, they acknowledge the two enduring preoccupations, art collecting and gardening. We will consider applications for one-off grants up to £10,000, but because of the high demand, most grants are currently £5,000 or less. Exceptionally, when funds permit, grants of as much as £60,000 are made, payable over several years.
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The Fenton Arts Trust – This charity focuses its efforts specifically on the support of artists at the beginning of their careers. Grants are available to support individual works, activities, performances or prizes in any field of artistic endeavour including drama, painting, sculpture, dance, music, poetry and architecture. The Trust’s overall aim is to give encouragement and financial support to those actively contributing to the creative arts in the U.K. It seeks to assist individuals and organisations who are making a worthwhile contribution to the artistic and cultural life of this country.
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Clore Duffield – Supports UK charities working in the arts, education, social welfare and health. Developing programmes and partnerships to create opportunities for people through art, culture and heritage in the UK. Artistic talent should be nurtured and supported wherever it exists and careers in the cultural sector should be open to all. Supporting new and existing Clore Learning Spaces to ensure children and young people, in particular, have the chance to benefit from art, culture and heritage and the inspiration, knowledge, joy and wellbeing they bring. We focus on excellence and outcomes and support organisations that endeavour to provide quality, people-focused programmes and continue to learn and evolve.
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British Film Institute National Lottery Strategy – BFI Development Funding awards money from the National Lottery to support the formal development of original live-action and animation feature filmmaking from treatments to production-ready screenplays. We aim to help these filmmakers develop compelling and viable projects to the point where they are ready to seek production funding. We aim to award funding to distinctive fiction film projects from adventurous storytellers across a range of genres, approaches and perspectives, which reflect and represent a wide range of voices and backgrounds.
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The Concertina Charitable Trust makes grants to charities that provide musical activities for the elderly community in need. Concertina makes grants to charitable bodies which provide musical entertainment and related activities for the elderly. This not only brightens up their lives but also provides a therapeutic benefit to their health and well-being.
Concertina is keen to support smaller organisations which might otherwise find it difficult to gain funding.
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The BRIT Trust welcomes applications for grant funding consistent with its mission of “improving lives through the power of music and the creative arts”. Its founding mission was to draw on the transformative power of music and the arts to do good and to enable positive life pathways for young people of all backgrounds – recognising that this can best be achieved by embracing accessibility, diversity and inclusion as key values.
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Fenland Culture Fund – offers grant funding for arts, culture and heritage projects and activities in Fenland. Grants of up to £2,000 are available for a range of activities that involve culture or heritage in Fenland. Applications must benefit communities or artists in Fenland and must align to at least one of the following Outcomes that align with the Fenland Cultural Strategy:
- Building New Relationships
- Reaching More People
- Improving The Quality of Your Work
- Supporting Artistic Ambition
Funded activities could involve one or more of a range of cultural or heritage activities such as drama, music, painting, photography, craft, storytelling, writing, circus, dance, digital arts, nature, archaeology, or museum practice. These activities might take the form of, for example, the creation of new work, skills development, the staging of a performance, an exhibition, workshops, the development of a heritage or nature trail, a festival, etc.
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Cultural Capital Fund – invests in nonprofit organizations, individuals, and projects that preserve and nurture arts and culture in Cambridge ensuring that our city continues its long-standing tradition of innovation and strives to nurture the diversity and creativity vital to Cambridge. The Cultural Capital Fund seeks to fund projects that:
- Spark creativity and imagination in youth to nurture future generations of creative thinkers and artists.
- Elevate and sustain Central Square, the city’s only cultural district, as a destination for the arts.
- Protect the viability of the local arts and culture ecosystem to foster creativity and innovation.
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The Rayne Foundation – We look for creative ways of tackling entrenched social issues through the arts, health and wellbeing. We support projects that can be replicated and led by people with vision. We particularly welcome applications addressing our areas of special interest, within our broader criteria. We will consider funding salaries and project costs (including a reasonable contribution to overheads or on-costs) for up to three years. Our grants typically fall in the range of £10,000 – £20,000 per annum for up to three years.
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Skinners Charity Foundation – We are funding Arts, Heritage, and Community projects. This can range from one-off events to multi-year projects. Grants of up to £2,000 per year are available for projects and/or capital items, with awards for three years open to consideration.
Arts and Heritage projects can include; local heritage projects which help local groups to conserve and restore their landmarks, landscape, traditions and culture. Examples of Performing and Visual Arts work are those involved in performances, art, music, and drama activities. Community projects cover work that supports their area, bringing together and supporting local people.
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Chapman Charity Trust – We favour applications from charities which aim to increase accessibility to the cultural arts and our national heritage. We prefer projects aimed at groups who don’t normally have the opportunity to participate in music, drama, dance or other areas of the arts. In many of the projects, we support arts organisations such as theatres in reaching out to schools, including special needs schools.
We also support programmes which use the arts, especially music, to help improve mental wellbeing, for example for dementia sufferers.
We focus new grants on charities:
- promoting physical and mental wellbeing
- conserving our natural environment and promoting the sustainable use of resources
- increasing the accessibility of the arts, especially for young people
We prefer to support charities which address the root causes of problems. We particularly welcome applications from research organisations. Most of our grants are £1,000, £2,000 or £3,000. Please click the link above showing past grants for further information.
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