Youth Endowment Fund
The Youth Endowment Fund (YEF), set up last year to support youth organisations working with young people at risk of offending and violence, has created a new fund to support young people at risk. The funding will prioritise organisations most at risk of closing due to the crisis.
At the moment it is unclear how much funding will be available from the £200m fund, but in a blog, executive director of the fund Jon Yates says the YEF will pay an external organisation to assess what support is needed and will have the biggest impact.
“On top of this, we will continue to support the charities we already fund – not one will lose out on funding from us because the original plans have to be changed,” he wrote. “Above all of this, our number one priority will be to get help and support to vulnerable young people who desperately need it.
“For the Youth Endowment Fund, the main thing is serving vulnerable young people. We will not allow them to be forgotten at this time. We are now acting. The time is urgent.”
More from: youthendowmentfund.org.uk
National Lottery funding
Charities and organisations affected by the financial impact of the coronavirus outbreak will be given accelerated access to National Lottery funding.
The UK’s largest grant giver announced in April that it will speed up grant allocations for the coming six-month period, worth £300m, prioritising support for community organisations struggling financially as a result of the pandemic, as well as those providing activities “specifically geared to supporting communities through this crisis”.
While the announcement means that many organisations working with children and young people will be able to apply for support, others will not have access to a funding stream they were previously eligible for, explained Dawn Austwick, chief executive of The National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF).
“Should we get through this initial tranche of support with some funding left or circumstances change, we will move to set new priorities,” Austwick says.
“We know that this means some groups will not be able to access our funding over the coming months and we will endeavour to return to our broader support as soon as we can.”
More on the impact of the changes on individual NLCF grant programmes: tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/funding/programmes
Prince’s Trust grants
The Prince’s Trust has teamed up with NatWest Bank to create a £5m fund to help young entrepreneurs keep their business afloat during the pandemic.
The Prince’s Trust and NatWest Enterprise Relief Fund is available to entrepreneurs aged 18-30, who can apply for grants and tailored support. Grants can be used to maintain core business operations during the crisis, as well as meet any existing financial commitments, such as paying for essential equipment or settling invoices from suppliers. In conjunction with these grants, the initiative will also offer one-to-one support and guidance to applicants who need it.
Entrepreneurs aged 18-30 who are not eligible for the fund but find their businesses to be affected by coronavirus can contact The Prince‘s Trust for support. Every young person who gets in touch will be offered personalised one-to-one support to connect with mentors or build their skills.
As part of its wider response to coronavirus, The Prince’s Trust has launched its Youth Action Plan to show how it will support young people who are out of school, unemployed, self-employed or generally needing a confidence boost over the coming weeks and months.
More from: princes-trust.org.uk
Comic Relief support
Another of the sector’s major funders, Comic Relief, has paused new applications for its Main and Small Grants programmes to enable it to focus on supporting the more than 3,000 existing local charities and projects it funds.
In a statement, the charity said it is doing everything it can to help disadvantaged children and young people affected by the coronavirus outbreak. It also provides support to families in crisis through its Emergency Essentials programme.
“Funding for these activities is needed right now and these projects have our full support at this difficult time,” it states.
“With this in mind, we are pausing all new applications for our Main and Small Grants programmes; this is a temporary measure which will enable us to take account of the effects of the pandemic on the UK’s children and young people, so that our funding can make a real difference now, and most importantly, to those who need it most.
“In the coming weeks, we will announce specific measures to further support children and young people affected by the coronavirus outbreak, including additional funding.”
More from: comicrelief.com/covid-19-faqs
National Emergencies Trust
Children’s charities can apply for funding from a £5m pot put in place by the National Emergencies Trust (NET).
The money has been pledged by the public, major charitable trusts and corporate donations. It is in addition to the £16m pledged to the Coronavirus Appeal.
The money will be distributed through 46 local community foundations across the country, which have an in-depth understanding of their local area, what the priority needs are and how best to address these issues, so they can ensure the funding goes where it is most needed and can make the most impact.
The fundraising appeal administration will be run by the British Red Cross, on behalf of the NET.
More from: nationalemergenciestrust.org.uk
