Funding sources for training / learning

These sources include funding both for staff or volunteers going on external training courses and for courses organised in-house for your organisation and its users. Therefore, before making any applications, check with the funder that your training course falls within their eligibility criteria. This list is by no mean exhaustive, as increasingly funders are supporting training activities but they may not mention it specifically i.e. may fall under 'general causes'. In nearly all cases, you need to allow a minimum of three months before finding out the outcome of your application - so plan ahead!

1) Funding for individuals

Your local Careers Service, library or university is the best place to find this information as they hold a series of guides and books such as ‘Funding for Individuals’ that you can read at their premises.

In addition there's the UnLtd Millennium Awards. This is a grant programme for individuals who wish to put an idea that will benefit their community into action. This programme is run via an endowment fund administered by a new foundation called UnLtd.

The UnLtd Millennium Award scheme will make awards at two levels:

• Level One awards will provide funding and support up to a value of £5,000 for people just getting started on a project.
• Level Two awards, up to £15,000, will enable individuals with promising projects to expand and develop them.

For more information please contact UnLtd on 0845 850 1122 or visit the website at www.unltd.org.uk

2) Local and regional sources for groups

Local Intervention and Development Fund (LIDF)
Learning and Skills Council
St Helen's Court
St Helen's Street
Derby
DE1 3GY

Tel: 0845 0194183 or 01332 868301

Under the LIDF groups can access small grants of between £500 and £5,000 or large grants up to £140,000.

Contact: Claire Williamson.

Awards for All
3 Embassy Drive
Calthorpe Road
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 1TR

Tel: 0121 345 7700
Fax: 0121 345 8888
Text phone: 0121 345 7666

Grants of between £300 and £10,000 are available towards training activities for bona fide organisations across the East Midlands with a constitution and bank account.

Priority is given to smaller voluntary organisations with an income below £20,000 per year.

Derbyshire Community Foundation Grants
Derbyshire Community Foundation
Foundation House
Unicorn Business Park
Ripley
Derbyshire
DE3 5GX

Tel: 01773 514854
Fax: 01773 741410
Website: http://www.derbyshirecommunityfoundation.co.uk/grants/grants_main.html - this link will take you directly to the grants page where you can view the particular funding stream you are looking for.

Contact: Jo Halligan at Derby CVS on 01332 227706 or The Derbyshire Community Foundation on derbyshirecf@derbyshirecommunityfoundation.co.uk

Derby Self Help Fund
Derby CVS
4 Charnwood Street
Derby
DE1 2GT
Tel: 01332 227738

Small grants of up to £200 are available to independent Health and Social care related self help groups based in Derby. Funding is available for start up costs, one-off events and specific training.

Contact: Liz Gumbley

Grassroots Grants
Derbyshire Community Foundation
Foundation House
Unicorn Business Park
Ripley
Derbyshire
DE3 5GX

Tel: 01773 514854
Fax: 01773 741410
Website: http://www.derbyshirecommunityfoundation.co.uk/grants/grants_menu.html - this link will take you directly to the grants page where you can view the particular funding stream you are looking for.

Groups can apply for a miniumum of £250 and a maximum of £5,000. This fund supports a broad range of community and voluntary groups with a variety of different costs. As with all of the Foundation's funds, the overarching purpose of each grant we make is to enhance the quality of life for people living in Derbyshire communities and to tackle disadvantages and inequalities faced by people living in the county and city today.

Contact: Jo Halligan at Derby CVS on 01332 227706 or The Derbyshire Community Foundation on derbyshirecf@derbyshirecommunityfoundation.co.uk

3) National sources

The list below isn't comprehensive and equally there are very few funding sources purely for training.

Most funders won't support what they call 'individual sponsorship' which includes staff or volunteer expenses for attending a particular seminar, conference or course, unless it's specified.

However, they're much more likely to fund such an expense if it's a part of a wider project, which ultimately will benefit many people, or particularly disadvantaged groups in the community, such as ethnic minorities or people with disabilities.

Adult Learners' Week Grants
NIACE
21 De Montfort Street
Leicester
L1 7GE

Tel: 0116 204 4200
Fax: 0116 223 0050

Grants of £500 are available towards Adult Learners' Week, which usually takes place in May. Organisations need to plan activities which promote learning and reach new groups of learners, such as ESF target groups. These include unemployed people, women returning to work and social groups at risk of exclusion. Applicants have to provide 55% match funding. The deadline is usually mid-March and there's a different learning theme every year.

Barclays Community Programme
PO Box 18
Old Market Square
Nottingham
NG1 6FF

Education and training is one of five key areas supported by Barclays Plc, although it's mainly targeted at schools. Grants of between £1,000 and £20,000 are available.

Contact: Janet Ford on 01636 663822

Big Lottery Fund
East Midlands Regional Office
Lower Ground Floor
Chiltern House
St Nicholas Court
25-27 Castle Court
Nottingham
NG1 7AR

Tel: 0115 934 9300

Camelot Foundation
11-13 Lower Grosvenor Place
London
SW1X 0EX

Tel: 020 7828 6085

The Camelot Foundation has issued new guidelines covering the period 2002 to 2009. The Foundation receives £2 million a year from Camelot PLC, operator of the National Lottery. The Trustees have decided that their new objective is to support work aimed at 'bringing marginalised young people into the mainstream of UK life'.

Contact: Julie Gilson, Grant Manager

Charities Aid Foundation
Kings Hill
West Malling
Kent
ME19 4TA

Tel : 01732 520334

Funding is offered to enable a charity to improve its management and effectiveness. This might include improving its use of financial resources, developing its facilities, staff, volunteers and members, improving its stability or helping it move into new areas of need. Funding isn't provided for training that is part of a charity’s core activities. CAF is also running a specific programme for ethnic minority groups. There are four closing dates: January, April, August and September.

Contact: Victoria Anderson, Head of Grantmaking

The Esmee Fairbairn Charitable Trust
11 Park Place
London
SW1A 1LP

Tel: 020 7297 4700 or 020 7297 4722

Education is one of four categories that the Trust supports; this covers early learning (0 to 5 years), family learning, school non-attenders and adult education. There's also a category for 'Social Development'. This involves fostering self help and the participation of those intended to benefit, enabling less advantaged people to be independent and gain useful skills, and encouraging volunteer involvement.

Training to achieve these objectives would be one activity funded by the Trust.

Garfield Weston Foundation

Weston Centre
10 Grosvenor Street
London
W1K 4QY

Tel: 020 7399 6565

Provides grants to both local and national charities of a minimum of £250 and no upper limit.

The Foundation supports a broad range of activities including education and various other areas of general benefit to the community. Funding is not given for individuals.

Group Community Affairs
Halifax Plc
8th Floor
Civic House
156 Great Charles Street
Birmingham
B3 3AH

Tel: 0121 252 8741

Grants of between £100 and £1,000 are available. They support initiatives that complement the National Curriculum and will benefit large numbers of students. They are also interested in schemes that promote:

• second chance learning for adults,
• vocational and life skills training;
• learning for young people;
• drug, alcohol and health awareness;
• special needs education;
• learning people with learning difficulties; and
• learning for ethnic minorities.

Lloyds TSB Foundation
PO Box 46156
3rd Floor
St Dunstan's Hill
London
EC3R 8WQ

Tel: 0115 958 8745 (East Midlands office)

The charity has no maximum grant. its average is £5,000. The Foundation primarily allocates its funds to to support local communities, helping people to improve their quality of life.

The Nationwide Foundation
Nationwide House
Pipers Way
Swindon
SN38 1NW

Tel: 01793 655113

The overall aim of the Foundation is to facilitate and enable people and communities to achieve goals and improve their quality of life. Grants of between £500 and £10,000 are available.

The Paul Hamlyn Foundation
18 Queen Anne’s Gate
London
SW1H 9AA

Tel: 020 7227 3500

Website: www.phf.org.uk

Educational grants are available towards tackling issues of school exclusion or truancy, innovative projects with young offenders, library schemes for disaffected young people and publishing training schemes. Grants range from under £5,000 to over £30,000.

Contact: Susan Blishen

4) Conservation / environment training and education

British Ecological Society
26 Blades Court
Deodar Road
Putney
London
SW15 2NU

Tel: 020 8871 9797

The Society administers several schemes for awarding grants, with the aim of promoting ecological research and training as widely as possible.

Local Heritage Initiative (LHI)
Local Heritage Information
18 Market Place
Bingham
Notts
NG13 8AP

Tel: 01949 876219

LHI is a national small grant scheme for local groups looking after landscapes, landmarks, traditions and culture. Training for volunteers is one of many categories funded.

Contact: Mrs Jean Rider

The Ernest Cook Trust
Fairford
Gloucester
GL7 4JH

Tel: 01285 713273

The Trust supports organisations providing training schemes in practical conservation skills. It also supports environmental research, rural craft training schemes and training for homeless and unemployed young people.

Contact: Antonia Eliot, Grants Administrator

5) Art education and training

East Midlands Arts
Mountfields House
Epinal Way
Loughborough
LE11 0QE

Tel: 0115 989 7520

Bursaries are provided for training and skills development in performing arts and combined arts and planning. It won't fund fees or projects for individuals in full time education.

The Music Sound Foundation
27 Wrights Lane
London
W8 5SW

Tel: 020 7795 7000

Grants of £2,500 are available. The Foundation aims to improve people’s access to music by supporting projects which encourage the education of the public, in particular young people, in all aspects of music. This includes scholarships to music colleges, music courses for teachers, and musically themed public lectures, concerts, recitals and exhibitions.

Contact: Janie Orr

National Foundation for Youth Music
One America Street
London
SE1 0NE

Tel: 020 7902 1060

Website: www.youthmusic.org.uk

This Foundation was set up to give opportunities to young people to work with skilled musicians in their communities. Funding is available to both youth music organisations and individual musicians but not towards scholarships or festivals

Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation
98 Portland Place
London
W1N 4ET

Tel: 020 7636 5313

Their education programme covers educational innovations and developments; and arts for young people.

Contact: Paula Ridley, Director

6) Other funding sources

Racial Justice Fund
Churches Commission for Racial Justice
Bastille Court
2 Paris Gardens
London
SE1 8ND

Tel: 020 7654 7242

The Churches Commission for Racial Justice operates the Ecumenial Racial Justice Fund to combat racism by enabling and empowering black communities. Education and / or campaigning activities within black communities is one priority area.

Trafford Hall
Ince Lane
Wimbolds
Trafford
Chester
CH2 4JP

Tel: 01244 300246
Fax: 01244 300818

Trafford Hall provides a series of residential courses for tenants and volunteers on subjects such as community buildings, fundraising, community cafes and organic community gardens. They regularly provide course bursaries (costing only £5 plus VAT to delegates) and travel bursaries of up to £25, as well as help towards childcare.

Contact: Judi Barwick

Frederic Seebohm Charitable Trust
5 Tavistock Place
London
WC1H 9SN

Tel: 020 7383 2124

Awards of up to £5,000 are available for individuals aged 30 to 50 years who wish to train for a change of career in mid-life. Candidates have to demonstrate evidence of commitment, a worked out career plan and specific financial circumstances. The deadline for applications is 11th July each year.

The Winston Churchill Travelling Fellowships
The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust
15 Queen’s Gate Terrace
London
SW7 5PR

Tel: 020 7584 9315

Some 100 travelling fellowships are awarded annually to enable individuals from all walks of life to acquire knowledge, gain experience abroad and work on a study project. Between 10 and 12 different categories are selected each year. The deadline is the last week of October every year.

7) Funding from Europe

The European Union has a multitude of funds for various purposes. Except for community initiatives, which require a transnational dimension, the main programme for is the European Social Fund (ESF) Objective 3. Objectives 1 and 2 target specific regions or areas, while Objective 3 develops human resources. Objective 3 has five policy fields - 'Active Labour Market Policies', 'Equal Opportunities for All and Promoting Social Inclusion', 'Lifetime Learning', 'Adaptability' and 'Entrepreneurship' - improving the role of women in their labour market.

To find out more about these funds contact either the European Team at Derby City Council on 01332 255717, CEFET on 0115 911 0419 or the European Information Centre on 0115 962 4624.