The Theatres Trust Small Grants Programme was launched in 2021 in partnership with the Linbury Trust and supported by additional donations from Judy Craymer CBE and the Charles Michael Holloway Charitable Trust. The Mackintosh Foundation is also contributing funding to the programme.
The Theatres Trust offers grants of up to £5,000, with no matched funding requirement, for small capital improvements to theatres run by charities and not-for-profit groups across the UK. Schemes should make a significant difference to a theatre's resilience, sustainability or accessibility, and/or improve the diversity of audiences.
Please note that revenue and survey costs are ineligible. This fund is to support improvements and repairs to the building fabric, and the key plant and machinery or the purchase of key equipment (not software) to improve digital infrastructure.
The scheme will prioritise improvements to buildings that protect theatre use and remove barriers to participation and attendance.
To be eligible, applicants must demonstrate that they:
o Own or manage theatres with titles or signed leases of more than five years on buildings in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
o Run a year-round programme of live performance, of no less than 30 performances a year, and
o Have a bona fide UK charitable or not-for-profit legal structure and be able to provide certified or audited accounts for at least two years
Eligible projects include small capital works, the installation of key plant and machinery and works which make theatre buildings digital-ready. Examples of initiatives that could be funded by the scheme include (please note that this is not an exclusive list):
o Improvements and repairs to the fabric of a building.
o Improving access for people with a disability.
o Key plant and machinery, and
o Making a theatre digital-ready.
Further information, guidance and an application form is available on the Trust’s website.
The next application deadline is midday (12 noon) on Friday 7th June 2024. The following deadline for applications is scheduled for midday on Friday 17th January 2025.
