The Henry Smith Charity was founded in 1628 by Henry Smith, a businessman working in the City of London. Since that time, the charity set up in his name, has been working to combat disadvantage throughout the UK. The Henry Smith Charity was amongst the largest grant makers in the UK in 2022, distributing £64.9 million in funds.
The Strengthening Communities fund provides grants of between £20,000 and £70,000 per year for projects running for up to three years (for projects that run for less than three years, clear reasons must be given). Whilst The Henry Smith Charity primarily fund charities, they will fund non-profits like Community Interest Companies (CICs) or constituted community groups if they can explain how they would use the funding for charitable purposes. The fund can be used for running costs such as rent, overheads, salaries and small capital items.
To apply, organisations must:
- Be grass-root, community-led and work in, or immediately next to, an area within the top 10% most deprived areas in the UK. To see if you're eligible, please click here.
- Have an annual income of between £20,000 and £500,000.
- Be established with a track record of at least eighteen months in their local area.
There is no deadline.
For more information and to apply, please click here. For full guidance notes, please click here.