UK: Women’s Urgent Support Fund (Round 1)

Deadline: 19-May-23

The Smallwood Trust is delighted to announce an open call for the Round 1 of the Women’s Urgent Support Fund to support organisations providing frontline services for women to manage the impact of the cost-of-living crisis.

The Women’s Urgent Support Fund is supported by over £3.2 million of National Lottery funding from The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest funder of community activity in the UK, to respond to the cost-of-living crisis. Thanks to National Lottery players, £3 million will be awarded in grants to 60 small, local community organisations led by and serving women.

Priority Areas

• The fund is open to organisations operating across England. but they are particularly looking to fund applications from women’s sector organisations in the following areas:
  • Coventry
  • Birmingham
  • Greater Manchester
  • Middlesbrough / Teesside
  • Hull
  • Leeds
  • Bradford
  • Liverpool
  • London – including a focus on Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Hackney Lambeth and Newham
  • Leicester
  • Newcastle Upon Tyne
  • Stoke on Trent
  • Nottingham
• The fund aims to support women most impacted by poverty and the cost-of-living crisis. In particular, they aim to fund organisations working with the following key client groups:
  • Women experiencing racial inequality
  • Disabled women
  • Women with No Recourse to Public Funds
  • Women that are the sole parent to children under 18 years
  • LGBTQ+ communities experiencing financial insecurity.

What do they mean by priority basic needs?

• The aim is to protect essential services for women most impacted by poverty and the cost-of-living crisis that they know is disproportionately affecting women and the organisations supporting them.
• Below are some examples of how funds may be used where there is a need for emergency support and basic needs for women over 18:
  • For organisational costs such as increasing or safeguarding the role of a key worker who is the first line of response to women in crisis.
  • For organisational costs such as covering increased rent for meeting spaces to allow and organisation to continue delivering services meeting basic needs of women in your communities.
  • For services such as emergency provision of clothing, food and welfare packs to offset the cost-of-living crisis. These should be purchased by the organisation to distribute to women in your community.

Funding Information

• Between £15,000 and £60,000 over three years. This should be split across the three years, with a maximum of £20,000 per annum.
• This will help organisations to both respond to the immediate cost-of-living crisis and in years two and three support these vital services to be sustained. They expect projects to commence from August 2023.

Impact

The anticipated impact for the fund is:

• Women affected by the cost-of-living crisis and poverty gain confidence, tools, skills and support to build their financial resilience and improve their mental health.
• Vital frontline jobs/roles and services will be safeguarded or enhanced by additional funding enabling organisations led by and serving women to meet increased demand for their services

Eligibility Criteria

• You can apply if you are one of the following:
  • Are delivering frontline services led by, for and/or serving women
  • Are responding to identified priority needs and demand as a result of the cost-of-living crisis
  • Are based England, with an income of less than £1,000,000
  • Are not-for-profit and one of the following:
    • Registered charity
    • Charitable Incorporated Organisation (“CIO”)
    • Charitable Trust
    • Co-operative Societies
    • Community Benefit Societies
    • Community Interest Companies limited by Guarantee
    • Community Interest Companies limited by Shares
    • Company limited by Guarantee
    • Unincorporated Association/Organisation
• To apply for the fund you must:
  • Have and be able to submit a written governing document (for example a constitution, memorandum and Articles of Association or set of rules) with objectives that meet the aims of the Fund and the Smallwood Trust
  • Have a governing body or management committee with at least three unrelated members / directors
  • Have a UK based bank account that requires the signatures of at least two authorised signatures, who are unrelated and do not live at the same address, to sign cheques or make a withdrawal.
  • Have an appropriate adult safeguarding policy
• All organisation’s must submit:
  • A copy of your most recent latest audited or independently examined accounts
  • Completed Smallwood Trust application form
• Management accounts may also be requested from applicants.
  • If you are not a registered charity, please also provide:
    • A copy of your constitution/governing document
    • A copy of your most recent management accounts showing a profit and loss account, balance sheet and a cash flow statement. They have a template you can use.

For more information, visit Smallwood Trust.