Deadline: 30 /06/2023
The National Lottery Community Fund is pleased to launch the Climate Action Fund to help communities across the UK to address climate change.
They’re looking for projects that focus on the link between nature and climate. They want to fund projects that use nature to encourage more community-led climate action. They expect these projects to bring other important social and economic benefits. Like the creation of strong, resilient and healthy communities or the development of ‘green’ skills and jobs.
They’re interested in projects that can do at least one of the following:
- Show how creating a deeper connection with nature will lead to changing people’s behaviours and greater care for the environment
- Show how by bringing nature back into the places they live and work, they can help communities to reduce or adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Funding Information
Up to £1.5 million over 2 to 5 years, with most projects between £300,000 and £500,000. Development grants of £50,000 to £150,000 over 12 to 18 months.
Types of projects they may fund
They are interested in funding a wide variety of different types of projects. These could include projects that bring communities together to:
- Make new, better quality and more accessible natural spaces. For example, where the natural environment has been replaced by human activity in urban areas
- Encourage environmental awareness by increasing outdoor learning opportunities
- Use nature to address growing climate problems – like the rising temperature or risk of flooding in urban areas
- Use stories or creative approaches to engage communities with the climate challenge through nature
- Explore systems of producing food that are less damaging to nature, more self-sufficient, or that shorten the distance they transport food.
Eligibility Criteria
- They’ll accept applications from either:
- Local partnerships
- UK-wide partnerships which are delivered across at least two UK countries (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales).
- They’re looking to fund partnerships that are made up of a mix of organisations from different sectors. They can fund both new partnerships and partnerships that have already been set up. At this stage, they’re looking for the organisation who is best placed to speak on behalf of the partnership.
- This organisation must be either a:
- Constituted group or club
- Voluntary or community organisation
- Registered charity
- Charitable incorporated organisation (SCIO/CIO)
- Community interest company (CIC)
- Not-for-profit company limited by guarantee – you must be a registered charity or have a not-for-profit ‘asset lock’ clause in your articles of association
- School, college, university (providing your project benefits and involves the wider local communities)
- Statutory body (including, town, parish and community council)
- Community benefit society.
- Ineligible
- They cannot accept applications from:
- Individuals
- Sole traders
- organisations that can pay profits to directors, shareholders or members (including Companies Limited by Shares) – They cannot fund these organisations directly but they can support your project
- organisations based outside the UK
- One individual or organisation applying on behalf of another
- organisations that do not have at least two people on their board or committee who are not married, in a long-term relationship, living together at the same address, or related by blood.
- They cannot accept applications from:
For more information, visit https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/funding/programmes/climate-action-fund-programme#section-4