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Funding for charities, community organisations and social enterprises

External funding advice and support from Suffolk County Council and its partners.

External funding provides an opportunity for organisations to access additional finance to support their programmes and initiatives. The application process is predominantly competitive, requiring applicants to submit a clear, evidenced and well costed bid.

Suffolk County Council works in partnership with a range of programmes and initiatives that support charities and community groups.

The External Funding team can:

  • identify potential funding opportunities
  • assist you with developing your bid or writing an application
  • signpost you to additional sources of help and support

Five questions to answer when developing your bid

1   What is the issue you want to address? You will need to provide evidence to back this up. Who does it affect, how does it affect them, why does it affect them?
2 What are you proposing to do? What service or activity do you want funding for?
3 Why you?

Why is your organisation / department / partnership best placed to address this issue (experience, expertise, reach, location, contacts)? 
4 What will success look like? What change will you create and how will you measure and demonstrate it?
5 What will it cost? How much money do you need to carry out your project? Provide a breakdown of the costs.

VCSE grant funding alert

For the latest grant funding opportunities available to Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisations in Suffolk:

If you would like to receive grants funding information either the VCSE grant alert or grant leads related to your service area, please register using the online form to be added to our contact database.

Additionally, if you have project ideas with estimated costs and would like advice and support on External Funding opportunities, please email the External Funding team at: fundingenquiries@suffolk.gov.uk

Follow us on Twitter: @FundingSuffolk

Community Action Suffolk (CAS)

Suffolk County Council provide funding to Community Action Suffolk to support the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector, enabling them to operate more effectively. Support includes:

  • advice and support: CAS provides support to help set-up new community organisations and charities, as well as advice on legislation, governance, funding and management
  • Health check: a free to use self-assessment tool which can help organisations identify strengths and weaknesses, as well as helping to prepare for submitting funding applications
  • Funding 4 Suffolk: search for available funding using the Funding 4 Suffolk portal
  • One to one funding surgeries: free surgeries delivered by CAS and Suffolk County Council's External Funding team

Suffolk Community Foundation

Suffolk Community Foundation provides grant funding to small and medium sized charities, voluntary and community groups, and social enterprises, who deliver essential services in Suffolk.

Councillor's Locality Budget

Each (Suffolk County Council) county councillor has a locality budget. They can use this to respond to local needs in their divisions, supporting projects or activities that benefit the communities they represent.

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