Apply for John Ellerman Foundation Grant Programme

Deadline: Ongoing Opportunity

The John Ellerman Foundation is inviting applications for its grant programme to advance the wellbeing of people, society and the natural world.

Types of Grants

• Arts: Creators and Curators
  • Aim
    • They believe arts and culture have the potential to enrich and transform lives, and they recognise its inherent value and unique effects. They will fund organisations that nurture, incubate and commission those people who make and curate work.
  • What they fund?
    • They concentrate the Arts funding under two separate headings:
      • Creators in the performing arts: they focus on the creation of the highest quality, nationally significant work, by funding organisations which collaborate with, commission or otherwise support artists to create new or reimagined work. They prioritise applicants from outside the capital, but do consider those based in London where the proposal would bring significant benefits elsewhere. (Organisations can apply at any time under this heading.)
      • Curators in museums and galleries outside London: they aim to strengthen those institutions that focus on making use of curatorial skills to attract a wider public
  • What they are looking for in the performing arts?
    • Organisations that do some of the following:
      • organisations with new or original work at their heart
      • track record of producing work that is engaging, well-received and of a high quality, which may include organisations that may be considered leaders within their art form
      • exciting, fresh and imaginative ideas and models of working
      • regional work that is valued and recognised nationally and internationally
      • integration of emerging talent and artist development into the artistic programme of work (i.e. developing an individual is not the organisation’s main or sole focus)
      • an understanding of actual and potential audiences and how the artistic plans relate to them.
• Environment: People and Planet
  • Aim
    • They believe that a healthy environment is essential to the wellbeing and resilience of people and nature. The aim is to achieve greater harmony between people and nature, through the protection, restoration and sustainable use of the natural world. They are interested in organisations that understand the interdependence of people and nature and apply this in their thinking and practice. Often, it is the system that has to change, so they will also support those working to influence governments, businesses and civil society through policy, advocacy and campaigning work.
  • What they fund?
    • They concentrate the Environment funding under two main headings:
      • The Ocean: protection, restoration and sustainable use of the ocean, through more and effectively and equitably managed protected areas; ocean recovery; engaging coastal communities; reducing overfishing and addressing other harmful effects of human activity on, and in the ocean, such as pollution.
      • Land and fresh waters: building healthier ecosystems in urban or rural environments, through effective and sustainable management including implementing evidence-based interventions conservation and restoration; connecting fragmented habitats; and landscape-scale work to protect and restore places of special significance. They will also support work to reduce or prevent the damaging impacts of human activities, particularly climate change, and air, land and water pollution from chemicals and other pollutants.
    • The focus is on the UK and UK waters. However, they are also keen to support land and marine-based work in the UK Overseas Territories (UKOTs). For work in the UKOTs, they welcome applications from UK-charities working in partnership with local Territory-based NGOs and from charities based in the UKOTs. UKOTs-based charities can apply either directly or through a charity conduit in the UK
  • What they are looking for?
    • Organisations that do some of the following:
      • seek to improve the natural environment
      • understand both the significance of habitats for human wellbeing, as well as the impact of people on nature
      • look for sustainable solutions by ensuring that the livelihoods and economic needs of local communities are integrated into their thinking and strategy
      • work collaboratively
      • seek to take an evidence-based approach
      • tackle underlying causes as well as symptoms.
• Social Action: Championing Change
  • Aim
    • They aim to help create an inclusive society where all can thrive, by supporting organisations which work to create positive changes at a systemic level. They believe it is people working together who create change. They are interested in organisations that tackle divisions and inequity, and who bring together individuals, community organisations and others, including national bodies, to influence government and the agencies that shape the lives.
  • What they fund?
    • They want to support those with ambition to achieve positive change at scale while also creating benefits for those involved. They will therefore concentrate the funding in pursuit of a thriving society on work which:
      • Actively involves those with personal experience of the issue tackled – reflecting the belief that those with direct personal experience of the issue/s understand them best and should have the agency and support to use their expertise, understanding and insights to drive forward the organisation’s work. They want them to be able to do this in a supportive environment that is committed to their success. They do not expect disclosures of an individual’s personal experience in applications, if this information is not already publicly known or available. They also value the importance of the expertise and insight of those that work alongside individuals and communities with personal experience.
      • Improves systems through policy, advocacy and campaigning – by ensuring those with personal experience are empowered to influence change and progress on the issues that matter to them, or on securing their rights; by connecting people and the establishment and creating opportunities for contact and dialogue, or by designing ad imagining alternative approaches to influencing if this is more appropriate; creating environments in which professionals and their organisations engage meaningfully; and using these approaches to advocate or campaign for improving policies, practices and systems.
      • They expect a variety of individuals and communities experiencing a range of inequities and discrimination to benefit from the funding. Given this broad canvas, they will prioritise work which tackles the greatest barriers created by divisions and inequity.
  • What they are looking for?
    • Organisations that:
      • are rooted in practical experience, rather than working exclusively on policy
      • understand the need to build people’s confidence and skills so they are ready to engage with others
      • value, promote and learn from the experience of those they support
      • are engaging with the unpopular or difficult cause
      • seek to tackle causes as well as symptoms.

Funding Information

• The minimum grant is circa £10,000. There is no maximum.

Eligibility Criteria

• They ask that organisations applying to them meet the following two criteria, which apply to all applications within each of the three areas of interest:
  • Organisations
    • They prioritise UK-registered charities with an income between £100,000 and £10m. This focus allows them to use the capacity and resources by supporting organisations that are established and experienced in the work they undertake. If your income is greater than this, they will only consider a grant if you are uniquely placed to help meet the funding objectives. They call this the ‘only they can do it’ test. If your income is lower than this, then they would expect to see clear evidence that your organisation has managed a turnover of £100,000 previously or is on track to do so soon. Furthermore, if your organisation is at the lower end of the turnover range, then they ask that you consider your request to them as a reasonable proportion of your overall turnover.
  • National significance
    • They want the funds to make a difference, with as wide an impact as possible. This may involve creating art of the highest quality; working across a wide geographical area; or sharing and expanding successful initiatives. They also recognise it may be necessary to change the system, and that by influencing policy, campaigning or adopting other approaches more far-reaching and longer-term benefits are possible.

Ineligibility Criteria

• They do not consider applications from organisations that:
  • have applied unsuccessfully within the previous 12 months
  • focus on a single medical area, such as an individual disease, organ or condition
  • are hospitals, hospices, schools, colleges or universities, unless the application is from a leading university specialist unit.
• Grants are not made to or for any of the following purposes:
  • individuals, including student grants or bursaries
  • general and round-robin appeals
  • capital developments and individual items of equipment
  • promotion of religion or places of worship
  • arts organisations and projects whose main focus is supporting and developing an individual, rather than when new work is part of an artistic programme
  • learning and participation in the arts, where this is the primary focus of the application
  • leisure or individual holiday schemes
  • sport, where this is the core of the organisation’s activities
  • education, such as initiatives linked to the curriculum, arts or environmental educational projects
  • animal welfare, captive breeding and animal rescue centres
  • medical research or treatment, including drug and alcohol rehabilitation services
  • work based in prisons that should receive statutory funding and does not pursue wider systems change one-off campaigns
  • one-off events, such as conferences, trips, seminars, master classes, summer schools, single commissions or productions.

For more information, visit John Ellerman Foundation.