FAQs

How much funding can I apply for from the Isle of Wight Foundation?

Grants of between £3,000 and £16,000 are available.

Are there restrictions on how the funding can be used?

Financial support will be given as a lump sum and must be used within 12 months of signing the funding agreement. The support is reserved for investment expenditure that is material (equipment, vehicles, ICT, furniture, furnishings etc) or non-material (e.g. a website, training, or staffing costs directly related to the project).

Any successful bidder for the Isle of Wight Foundation grant funding will be offered a funding agreement with conditions. The agreement will include arrangements that will be put in place to monitor how the project outcomes are being delivered. Any funding provided through the Isle of Wight Foundation can only be used for the purposes set out in any funding agreement.

What sort of projects does the IW Foundation support?

All requests must fall within one of the IW Foundation’s key funding areas: Providing people with better chances to access training and development to improve their life skills and opportunity for employment or building stronger communities with more active citizens working together to minimise social exclusion.

The following will not be considered:

• Projects or activities that do not meet any of the Foundation aims and criteria.
• Any costs you incur when putting together a grant application.
• Activities that happen or start before we confirm our grant to you.
• Political or religious activities.
• Day-to-day operating costs (for example, utility bills, council tax, rent and insurance).
• Land or building projects where the ownership or lease is not yet in place (including any planning permissions).
• On-going staff costs (although we will consider staffing costs directly related to the project)
• Projects or activities that the state or a statutory body has a legal obligation to provide.
• Projects that cannot be completed within 12 months of the date of the letter confirming the grant.

We are not a registered charity, can we still apply for funding?

The Isle of Wight Foundation will consider applications from any community interest or not-for-profit organisations working on the Isle of Wight (for example, charities, community groups and voluntary organisations) that can meet the funding aims and criteria specified. It will not consider applications from individuals, private sector (profit based) organisations, statutory bodies, federations, public organisations, schools and educational establishments (schools ‘Friends’ associations’ applications will be considered if funding is towards non-statutory provision) institutions and political or religious organisations/groups.

How should we apply for funding?

An application form is provided on the website at the start of each grant call and should be completed in full (no handwritten forms will be considered) and returned to the Isle of Wight Foundation by email or post to the address detailed at the end of the application form. The deadline for the application will also be detailed on the form.

When do applications for funding open?

The grant call is usually issued in February, with closing date for applications around the beginning of May. Successful applicants will be notified later in the year with funding commencing the following January. Please check our page ‘How to apply for funding’ for more details.