Deadline: 31-Oct-2025
The Step Change Fund, run by Oxfordshire Community Foundation, offers a transformative opportunity for medium-sized charities across Oxfordshire.
Geared toward organisations determined to strengthen their foundations and achieve lasting impact, these grants are designed to drive organisational growth and resilience.
Grants range from £10,000 to £50,000, aiming to support projects that represent a true “step change” in capacity, service reach, or financial sustainability. These funds are capped at 30% of an organisation’s annual income and require an established annual turnover of £100,000 to £1 million for eligibility.
What sets the Step Change Fund apart is its commitment to managed growth. Each grantee is paired with an experienced project manager—a volunteer expert—who works alongside the charity to set benchmarks, track progress, and ensure that milestones are met before releasing subsequent tranches of funding.
This rigorous support model has delivered strong outcomes: the fund consistently achieves around an 80% success rate among supported projects, often helping grantees boost their turnover by approximately 60%. Since 2014, the scheme has distributed nearly £1.7 million to support 32 charities across the county.
The application process begins with an eligibility questionnaire, followed by submission of an expression of interest. Shortlisted charities are then invited to pitch a full proposal complete with detailed project milestones and performance indicators. As milestones are reached and validated by the project manager, grant payments are disbursed accordingly.
This fund is ideal for visionary organisations with strong leadership and a clear strategy for strengthening their impact. By offering much more than financial support, Step Change empowers charities to tackle enduring social challenges with greater confidence and capacity.
For more information, visit Oxfordshire Community Foundation.
