THE DATA PROTECTION OFFICER (DPO) CENTRE CHARITY AND COMMUNITY FUND

Grants of up to £10,000 are available to enable UK charities, voluntary groups and not-for profits organisations to access DPO data protection advice and consultancy services.
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Application deadlineTHURSDAY 1st AUGUST 2024. The current round opened to applications on Saturday 1st June 2024
o FunderThe Data Protection Officer (DPO) Centre (The DPO Centre is a Data Protection Officer resource centre with its main offices in London. The Centre provides data protection and privacy advice, as well as access to skilled and experience resources whenever and wherever it is needed).
o Who can applyUK registered charities, voluntary and community groups and not-for-profit organisations.
o Key wordsData Protection Advice and Consultancy, Data Protection Training, Impact Assessments, Gap Analysis, Data Mapping, Policy Review, United Kingdom.
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The Data Protection Officer (DPO) Centre’s Charity and Community Fund is similar to other professional bodies such as the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists in that it provides funding to access its protection advice and consultancy services for UK charities and not-for-profit organisations.

The DPO Centre has set aside a £150,000 (previously £100,000) funding pot, divided into 3 application periods throughout 2024. The first application deadline was Sunday 31st March 2024. The current round is open until Thursday 1st August 2024. Each round has a budget of £50,000. Eligible charities can apply for a grant towards any of the following DPO consultancy services:

o Data Protection Training.
o Data Protection Readiness.
o Data Sharing and International Transfers.
o Impact Assessments and Gap Analysis.
o Information Asset Register and Data Mapping.​
o Policy Drafting and Review​, 
and
o Privacy-by-Design.

Please note that this is not an exclusive list and the DPO may be able to offer other consultancy and advice services.

Grants of up to £10,000 are available. There is a 20% matched funding requirement. Previously unsuccessful organisations are welcome to reapply, but only one application per 12-month period will be considered.

To be eligible to apply, organisations must:

o Be based in the UK.
o Be willing to carry out a case study once the consultancy work has been completed.
o Have a bank account in the organisation’s name, 
and
o Have a management committee in place of at least three people.

The application process is:

Stage 1 – eligible organisations should initially submit a brief online application through the DPO Centre website.
Stage 2 – applicants will receive an email confirming their submission, following which the DPO Centre will request further information to complete the application.

Further information, guidance and details about how to apply is available on the DPO Centre website.

The second of three application deadlines during 2024 is on Thursday 1st August 2024. The further grants round will be announced this autumn.