The Santander Foundation’s Financial and Digital Empowerment Fund is designed to support projects that will help people to become digitally and financially empowered.
The Fund is aimed at enabling UK charities to give people the digital confidence, knowledge, and skills to enable them to make better, more informed decisions about money and have access to financial services.
The Foundation particularly wants to provide grant support for charities that are working with people who are socially disadvantaged and vulnerable through financial and/or digital exclusion by virtue of their age, education, income, disability and/or unemployment. The Foundation lists a number of groups that are commonly excluded from financial services as those it would most like to reach: Groups identified by the Foundation as among the most commonly excluded from financial services include (please note that this is not an exclusive list and other groups such as, for example, ex-offenders and those who are homeless, may also be considered):
o Households headed by students or part-time workers.
o Lone parents.
o Migrants.
o People on a low or unstable income.
o People who have experienced a significant life shock or trauma.
o People struggling to find sustained employment.
o People with a disability.
o People with long-term illness.
o Refugees, and
o Single pensioners.
Grants of up to £150,000 for a term of 3 years (with a minimum grant of £25,000 per year) are available to UK registered charities and social enterprises with an annual income of over £75,000. Please note that small to medium-sized organisations with an income of under £2 million will be prioritised for grant support..
In order to apply, eligible organisation must meet the following criteria:
o Be a UK registered charity or Community Interest Company.
o Be based in the UK and working within one of the nations or regions.
o Have a bank account in the organisation's name with at least two unconnected signatories.
o Have been operating for at least 18 months and have at least one set of annual accounts, and
o Have at least three unconnected Trustees, Directors or Management Committee members.
Further information, guidance and an online application form is available on the Foundation’s website.
The application deadline is Friday 23rd September 2022.
