The Masonic Charitable Foundation Later Life Inclusion Programme, which has recently opened again to applications, offers small and large grants to registered charities that support disadvantaged and vulnerable older people over 50 years of age in England and Wales through one or more of the following:
o Advocacy, social and welfare support.
o Community based approaches (for example, volunteering, positive ageing and neighbourhood support).
o Gateway and access to services, (for example, transport and technology), and/or
o Mental and physical health support.
Grants are available for charities that are working with older people who face social isolation or loneliness for circumstances such as:
o Bereavement.
o Care responsibilities.
o Declining physical or mental health.
o Financial hardship, and
o Retirement. care responsibilities, a decline in physical or mental health.
Grants are available for charities that provide activities such as:
o Advice and information on options for those with health conditions.
o Carers and respite support.
o Digital inclusion sessions to enable older people to access services.
o Enabling older people to remain active and make friends.
o Providing companionship and befriending schemes for periods of transition, and/or
o Support for emotional and psychological planning for later life.
The following grants, which can be awarded over 1, 2 or 3 years, are available:
1. Small Grants: grants of between £1,000 and £15,000 are available to charities with an income of under £500,000. Small grants can be used for general running and/or overhead costs of the charity, or
2. Large grants: grants of between £10,000 and £60,000 (with the occasional higher award) for charities with an income exceeding £500,000. Large grants are specifically for projects and can be used for salary costs, activities and materials.
Funding is not available for:
o Animal welfare.
o Arts and heritage projects. (Arts and Heritage charities will be considered if the service the charity provides is for beneficiaries from the priority groups.)
o Capital repairs and/or maintenance of existing buildings.
o Civil liberties and human rights.
o Contributions towards new build and/or large scale capital projects, e.g. building a new hospice wing.
o Current active grant holders.
o Environmental projects.
o Hospital equipment, such as MRI scanners.
o Hospitals (for routine delivery activities to non-priority groups).
o Individuals.
o Nurseries (for routine delivery activities to non-priority groups).
o Organisations that are not registered charities.
o Political or lobbying activities.
o Schools (for routine delivery activities to non-priority groups).
o Social Enterprises or Community Interest Companies, or
o Those who have had a small grant or second stage large grant application within the last 12 months.
The Foundation is now accepting applications at any time (it previously operated via a series of application deadlines). In general, it takes the Foundation 2-3 weeks to make a decision on eligibility for small grants and 3-4 weeks for large grants. Decisions on actual applications can take several months in both instances.
Further information, guidance and an online application form is available on the Foundation’s website. Please note that the Foundation will only consider online applications.
