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.

Please see our web pages for details of charities we funded last year.

We will not provide funding:

• To cover running costs of accommodation.
• If you have guaranteed the liability of another organisation, for example if you have guaranteed that another charity will re-pay a loan.
• For capital projects (for example building or major renovation works).
• 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.

Unfortunately, you can’t apply for unrestricted funding if your charitable activities are wider than the London boroughs of Tower Hamlets, Southwark, Lewisham and Hackney. However, you can still apply for restricted funding for projects in one or more of our key boroughs. 

Yes, we welcome applications for multi-year funding. However, it is important to note that most of our grants are for one year. 

We will award grants that do not exceed 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.

For one-off grants, we award between £500 and £3,000.

For multi-year grants, (up to three years), the total amount you can apply for, i.e. the maximum aggregate amount, is £9,000.

Unfortunately not. You are eligible to apply once your grant period is completed. You can find this information on your current terms and conditions that we sent you when we gave you your grant.

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. 

Please note that the Foundation reserves the right to request a visit or a meeting if your total request is below £3,000.

Your application must demonstrate the need for what you are proposing to do in one or more of our core boroughs.

We want to see that you have thought about how you will monitor your work and what you will be monitoring.

Impact is very important. We want you to tell us how what you propose to do will make a difference to people’s lives and how you will evidence that this change has happened.

If you are applying for unrestricted funding, you do not need to submit a budget.

If you are applying for a restricted grant, you will need to provide a budget for each year of the funding you are applying for.

This must show the following –

All income and expenditure for the project. This should also include explanations where needed, such as the number of sessions, staff hours, etc.

Grants already secured against the project.

Grants for the project that you are awaiting a decision from the funder on. Please include

• The amount you have applied for.
• The likelihood of your application being successful on a scale of 1-5 (with 1 being highly unlikely).
• When you expect to get a decision from the funder.

Please note that project costs should be broken down 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 recognise that charities will have their own budget templates. It is important that the information detailed above is included. For this reason, we have not included a budget template, but we do have one available which you can request by emailing charities@merchant-taylors.co.uk

Our application form will become available from the 14th of September.

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 the automated email and budget (if you submitted one), safe. You will need them to answer any queries we may have and to write you report(s) if your application is successful.

All applications are fully assessed based on the following criteria.

• Eligibility of your charity.
• Your charity’s governance and finance
• The strength of your proposal including the evidence of need and how you will monitor and show that the grant has made a difference.
• The strength and clarity of your submitted budget if you are applying for restricted or project funding

If we feel we need further information or we will get in touch with you.

If your application is not eligible, incomplete, or does not address the criteria outlined in these FAQ’s we may reject your application early in the assessment process. We will notify you but unfortunately, due to the fact that we are a small team we will be unable to provide individual feedback.

We therefore recommend that you take the time to read these FAQ’s carefully and get in touch with us if you have any queries.

For one off funding requests under £3,000, you can expect a decision in February 2027.

For applications £3,000 and over, a decision will be made in April 2027.

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

If your application is rejected, we will let you know but regretfully, as we are a small staff team, we are unable to give individual feedback.

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.