THE ASDA FOUNDATION: LOCAL COMMUNITY SPACES GRANT PROGRAMME
Grants of between £10,000 and £20,000 are available to UK charitable organisations with an annual income of less than £250,000 for the creation of safe spaces for people to meet and be together.
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o Application deadline: Wednesday 28th May 2025 at 10am (the programme opens to applications at 10am on Wednesday 7th May 2025). Please note that the programme may close early if it becomes oversubscribed. Early application is therefore advised.
o Funder: The Asda Foundation (founded 1988. Charity number 1124268. Total value of all grants awarded during the year ended 31 December 2023: £3,158,135 (2022: £4,264,343)).
o Who can apply: UK charities and not-for-profit organisations with an annual income of less than £250,000.
o Key words: Safe and Accessible Community Spaces, Community Cohesion, Community Buildings, Community Centres, Community Hubs, Village Halls, Youth Clubs, Sports Clubs, Religious Buildings, Scouts and Guides Groups, United Kingdom.
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During 2025, the Asda Foundation will be investing over £1 million through its Local
Community Spaces Fund. Grants of between £10,000 and £20,000 are available to community groups throughout the UK to provide a safe space for people to meet and be together (please note that there is a 50% matched funding requirement for the programme).
Projects must start after September 2025 and be completed by December 2026.
Applicants must meet the following eligibility requirements:
o Be a not-for-profit organisation with an annual income of less than £250,000 and unrestricted reserves of £40,000.
o Able to evidence financial stability and need.
o Have a governing document such as a constitution.
o An up-to-date Safeguarding policy for children, young people and vulnerable adults, and
o A bank account in the applying group’s name.
Community spaces must be accessible for community members to interact, seek support and access a variety of services and activities. Applications from groups with free-to-access services that are inclusive to many are encouraged, but groups with fees that prevent participation are less likely to be funded.
Applications are welcomed from:
o Amateur sports clubs who have diversified their sport offering to wider services that strengthen the community, and whose buildings serve as a community hub, offering a variety of services for a range of groups other than those involved in the main sport being offered.
o Community Centres, Community Hubs and Village Hall that are used by a wide range of groups, particularly in isolated areas which might have fewer community spaces.
o Religious buildings that are community hubs for people of all faiths in areas with limited community facilities.
o Scouting, guiding and cadets groups, etc: applications for a space that is a community hub in an area with limited community facilities and where the space is used by multiple different group types outside of the Scouts/Guiding/Cadets community would be considered, and
o Youth clubs whose space hosts a range of activities and groups with a large number of service users, particularly groups who provide services in a low socio-economic area.
Applications that demonstrate the following are likely to be prioritised for grant support:
1. A good track record of ongoing work in a community-hub setting.
2. Are providing a local community space in an area of heightened economic and social deprivation.
3. Have a wide range of users throughout the community, or those who predominantly support at least one of the following demographics:
o Older people/the elderly.
o People on a low income.
o Teenagers and young adults, and
o Vulnerable people.; and low-income users.
4. Groups that would be unable to continue offering their service without the work taking place, and
5. Groups that can provide well-thought-out costings which are deemed good value for money.
The Foundation gives the following examples of projects that could be supported through the Community Spaces Fund (please note that this is not an exclusive list):
o Boilers and heating.
o Building extensions.
o Creation of a new permanent space
o Disabled access ramps to a community building.
o Essential building security upgrades
o Kitchen and bathroom refurbishments.
o Removable items (e.g. soft furnishings, tables and chairs, white goods and electrical items, garden machinery) provided they only make up a small portion of a wider application to repair, renovate, or develop a community space.
o Roof and floors repairs.
o Transformation of a disused space into a functional space, and/or
o Upgrades and replacements to windows and doors.
The programme opens to applications at 10am on Wednesday 7th May 2025 and will close at 10am on Wednesday 28th May 2025. However, the Foundation may close the programme earlier than the scheduled deadline if it becomes oversubscribed. Early application is therefore advised.
Successful applicants are expected to be notified by the end of August 2025.
Further information and guidance, including an application form, is available on the Foundation’s website.
Contact details for the Foundation are:
The ASDA Foundation
Asda House
Southbank
Great Wilson Street
Leeds
LS11 5AD