THE SAMUEL GARDNER MEMORIAL TRUST
Grants, normally for up to £1,500 are available to UK registered charities for the advancement of music and musical education.
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o Application deadline: SATURDAY 28th FEBRUARY 2026.
o Funder: The Samuel Gardner Memorial Trust (founded 1970. Charity number 261059. Total value of all grants awarded during the year ended 5 April 2024: £53,300 (2023: £42,167)).
o Who can apply: UK registered charities.
o Key words: Music, Musical Education, Learning, Participation, Inclusiveness, Children and Young People, Music in Healthcare, Preservation of the Natural Environment, United Kingdom.
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The objectives of the Samuel Gardner Memorial Trust are to apply its assets towards the advancement of music and musical education.
The Trust’s main priority is to support music education projects which show lasting legacy and quality, and are centred on:
o Learning and participation.
o Music in healthcare.
o Young people’s musical development, and
o inclusiveness.
As a subsidiary strand, the Trust will also consider applications which address the preservation of the natural environment, particularly the preservation of trees, gardens and the provision of open spaces, public walks etc.
During the year ended 5th April 2024, the Trust awarded 31 grants out of 80 applications received totalling £53,300 (2023: £42,167).
Most grants were for £1,500 with a sole higher award of £22,000 (to Purcell School, a specialist music school is Bushey, south Hertfordshire).
A list of all grant recipients is provided on pages 8 and 9 of the Trust’s annual accounts.
The Trust was able to support more applications during the year, compared with 2023 from charities undertaking a range of creative work in the fields of arts and health, music education, performance (indoors and outdoors) and composition.
Organisations were based across the United Kingdom and included hospices, social care settings, marginalised communities, and well-established choirs and orchestras for young people, all making a difference to participants’ lives.
Funding is not available for:
o The sole benefit an individual (for example, as a bursary).
o The core costs of running an organisation, or
o Projects that have already started.
The Trustees usually meet twice per year, in April and October. All applications for consideration in the spring funding round must be submitted by the end of February. For the autumn funding round, applications must be received by the end of August. Late applications will be held over until the next meeting.
The next deadline for applications is therefore Saturday 28th February 2026.
Further information, guidance and an online application form is available on the Trust’s website. Applications and queries can be emailed to the Trust at samuelgardnertrust@outlook.com