Investing in families

This programme will make grants to organisations working to support the most vulnerable and disadvantaged families, thereby improving people’s life chances and promoting social cohesion. It will support charitable organisations working to meet the needs of families with a wide-range of problems, including social isolation; poverty and debt; drug and alcohol abuse; mental health issues; domestic abuse; caring for a sick or disabled family member and the short and long-term impacts of bereavement.

The Trust is particularly keen to hear from organisations that take a ‘whole family’ approach and those that work to tackle the underlying root causes of the problems that families face. Priority will be given to organisations that consult and involve their client group in the delivery of their services, as all too often families say that they feel completely incidental to the decisions that are made about them.

Eligibility criteria:

• Organisations must be a registered charity, CIC, social enterprise or other properly constituted not-for-profit organisation1 with a management committee with at least three unrelated members • Organisations must be working to benefit people living in Kent • Funding will not be allocated for core costs of an existing service unless this will unlock new opportunities or extend the service in some way • Organisations must be able to provide at least two years of published financial accounts • Grants can be paid only into a UK bank account in the organisation’s name.

Exclusions:

We regret that ordinarily we are not able to fund:

• Individuals - unless they are made as part of our ‘Hardship Awards’ Programme • National charities that do not have a physical base in Kent • Statutory bodies and anything deemed to be the responsibility of the State • Nurseries, schools and colleges • Hospitals and health authorities • Medical care, medical equipment or medical research • Academic research, scholarships or bursaries • Animal charities • The promotion of religion • The restoration/conservation of buildings, unless for the practical benefit of the community • Annual or one-off events and festivals • Work outside of Kent • Endowment appeals • Work that has already taken place i.e. retrospective funding • Round-robin, widely circulated appeals