Funding

Exeter Connect can respond to your group or organisation in a customised way depending on your circumstances and needs, however it can be helpful to know about some places to start when investigating funding.

We also share relevant funding news in our newsletter.

Exeter City Council Grants Funding Options

The Exeter City Council Grants Programme offers support for community groups and organisations to work on local projects that help make Exeter such a great place to live. You can find out more and apply on the Exeter City Council website. If you would like any support with applying, Exeter Connect can support you with this so please contact us.

Exeter Ward Grants

Community groups can apply for a maximum grant of £350. A Ward Grant can support a community project, a local community festival, a local theatre production or a craft group. Examples of costs that could be supported include equipment or resources, publicity, materials, and refreshments. Applicants for a Ward Grant will need to demonstrate that there is community support for your project.

Ward grants are for one-off purchases or events and cannot be used for on-going running costs such as wages, utility bills, rent etc. You can apply for a ward grant for a project to cover one ward.

Devon County Council Funding Options

Devon County Council provides the latest information on funding opportunities to support business, environmental and social projects in Devon.

Councillors can also use their locality budget fund to support projects or activities that benefit the communities they represent. Any constituted not-for-private-profit voluntary or community group can apply to their local county councillor for a grant.

Please note that as of August 2022, there has been a suspension on the funding as DCC evaluates its current budget priorities.

General funding tips and support options

GRIN

GRIN is a Devon based organisation which sends out a daily funding bulletin with information about upcoming local and national funding.

Devon Community Foundation

Devon Community Foundation (DCF) provides grants to local groups across Devon. The majority of grants it awards are between £1,000 and £5,000 and the DCF is particularly interested in supporting smaller community groups.

My Funding Central

My Funding Central is a regularly updated funding database with customised search options. Membership is free for organisations with incomes of under £30,000.

Crowdfund Devon

Crowdfund Devon supports community groups and charities across the County to raise money from the crowd. Crowdfund partners may be able to match-fund your project.

NCVO

NCVO membership is free to charities with under £30,000 annual income or a small annual charge for larger groups. NCVO run a range of training courses and the KnowHow section of their website has toolkits and guides for all aspects of charity development and management.

The Directory of Social Change

The Directory of Social Change provide training courses, publications, online funding databases, research, conferences, a bookshop and resources such as the New Charity Checklist.

For more information on any of these please contact us.

Exeter Connect is also subscribed to various grant finder and search services, some of which are only available as a paid subscription. If you would like us to make a search on behalf of your group, please get in touch.

We promote short term funding opportunities we hear about through our social media and newsletter.

Do you have an idea?

If you have an idea that you would like to discuss, we would love to hear from you!