Central Government Funding

• Overview
• Central Government Departments
• Finding Central Government Grants 

Overview

Central Government determines the overall policy agenda for government funding of voluntary and community organisations.

Funding is distributed not just directly by government departments, but also through Government Offices for the Regions, Local Authorities, Area-Based Initiatives, Local Strategic Partnerships, non-departmental public bodies and other intermediate agencies.

These intermediate funders are closer to where the money will actually be spent and so are being given increasing flexibility to decide on local priorities for funding based on their own knowledge of local need (albeit within a national framework).  

Central Government Departments

The main Central Government Departments providing funding to the voluntary and community sector are: 

• Department of Children Schools and Families
• Department of Health
• Department of Communities and Local Government
• Department of Works and Pensions

Finding Government Grants

• The Office of the Third Sector provides information on sources of funding, finance and support from Government.
• Government Funding is an online portal to government funding that enables you to search, find and apply for grants.
  You can register on the site for email alerts on new and updated grant schemes. You can also add your organisation's details to the Directory of Users and use it as a networking tool. A bulletin board enables you to discuss specific grants and share expertise with other VCOs. Subscription is free for organisations with a turnover less than £500,000.
• The Direct Gov website provides access to the full range of government information and services. The site has a page focusing on voluntary and community groups appying for funding.
• Grants Online - For an overview (literally) in the form of a mindmap on government funding sources, with links which take you to anything which catches your eye. You can also search the grants database and receive email alerts with all the latest information. This is a subscription site but you can apply for a free trial before paying out the annual fee.
• Access Funds is designed specifically for the non-profit sector and aims to provide the latest information from central government, regional and local government including government quangos as well as a range of other sources. It is also a subscription site but a free trial is available.