THE RON PICKERING MEMORIAL FUND
Small grants, generally for under £500, are available to provide financial support for talented young able and disabled athletes in the UK aged between 15 and 23, ideally while they are still in education. Grants for athletes aged over 23 can also be made in exceptional circumstances.
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o Application deadline: SUNDAY 30th NOVEMBER 2025 (the charity’s website doesn’t give a deadline for applications, but in previous years this has fallen on the last day of November).
o Funder: The Ron Pickering Memorial Fund (founded 1991. Charity number 1005166. Total charitable expenditure for the year ended 31 July 2024: £51,014 (2023: £45,732; 2022: £50,027)).
o Who can apply: UK registered charities, charitable organisations, individuals. Grants are available to both able and disability athletes between the ages of 15 and 23, with grants to athletes over 23 being made in exceptional circumstances.
o Key words: Sport, Athletes, Young Athletes aged 15-23, Athletes with a Disability, Training, Equipment, individuals, United Kingdom.
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The Ron Pickering Memorial Fund was founded in memory of Ron Pickering OBE, a teacher, athletics coach and television commentator. In particular, Pickering was an advocate of the ethics of sport, the aspirations of the young and for the belief that sport could enhance lives in more ways than just physically.
The main purpose of the Ron Pickering Memorial Fund is to provide financial support for talented young athletes across the UK aged between 15 and 23, ideally while they are still in education. Grants for athletes aged over 23 can also be made in exceptional circumstances.
The Fund is designed to assist young athletes with their training and equipment costs and encourage them to continue participating in sport in order that they can reach their potential and learn the ethics of fair play.
Grants should have an impact on an athlete’s ability to develop with a view to helping recipients make the difficult transition from junior to senior level through:
o Support for equipment.
o Specialist coaching.
o Travel, and
o Helping build an athlete’s confidence and self-esteem through recognition.
The charity also assists coaches, athletic clubs and the Schools Athletics Associations and in the past has supported the development of Sports Hall Athletics around the UK in order to introduce more young children to the fun of athletics.
Grant awards are usually for less than £500. During the year ended 31st July 2024. the Fund received over 600 applications and awarded a total amount of £39,800 in grants to 208 talented young British athletes. 49% of grants went to female athletes and 51% to male. There was a good spread across the age groups: 36% of grants went to Under 18’s, 26% to Under 20’s, 29% to Under 23’s and 9% to 23+ athletes.
As a comparison, during the year ended 31st July 2023,, the Fund received over 600 applications and awarded a total amount of £37,850 in grants to 190 young British athletes. 47% of all grants awarded went to female athletes and 53% to male, while 33.3% of grants went to athletes aged 17 and under, 25.4% to 18-19 year olds and 40% to those between 20 & 23 years.
A further breakdown of awards made during the year can be found on page 4 of the Fund’s annual accounts, where details of the Jean Pickering Olympic Scholarships (JPOS) are also mentioned.
The application process opens in October and November annually, with grants awarded in December to January.
The deadline for 2025 applications is Sunday 30th November 2025.
Further information, guidance, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and an application form is available on the Fund’s website.