Grant Funding: Frequently Asked Questions

Start by visiting our funding page and completing the eligibility checker. This quick tool will help you confirm if your organisation meets our criteria.

You can submit one application every six months. If you’re unsure which form to complete, please get in touch with our grants team – we’re happy to guide you.

To process your application, we’ll need:

• A full month’s bank statement (dated within the last 3 months) showing account name, number, and sort code. This helps us verify your organisation’s bank details and ensure normal account activity.
  Tip: You can blank out individuals’ names, but keep dates, amounts, and descriptions visible.

• Your most recent accounts. If you don’t have a full set for the last financial year, audited management accounts or an income/expenditure spreadsheet are acceptable.

• Your governing document (only if you’re not registered with the Charity Commission). This must include charitable objects and a dissolution clause.

• Safeguarding Policy (if applicable), reviewed within the last three years. It should include your DBS policy and how incidents or concerns are reported.

• Estimates or quotes for goods/services/one-off costs of £750 or more.

We review:

• Your latest audited accounts and financial sustainability

• Charity Commission filings (if registered) to ensure they’re up to date

• Bank account activity and safeguards for transactions

• Your constitution for clear charitable objectives and dissolution clause

• Safeguarding policy for work with vulnerable adults or children

• Previous grants from Kent Community Foundation to confirm monitoring and evaluation are complete
  We may also contact your referee for a reference.

Your referee should be:

• A professional individual who does not directly benefit from your group

• Someone who knows your organisation well and can vouch for its sustainability and competence

• Familiar with your application and project details

We’re here to help. Our grants team can assist by email, phone, or in person. We support applicants with limited internet access or disabilities that make online forms difficult.

If you have sight problems, we can provide a Word version of the application form. Call us on 01303 814 500 for assistance.

No. We only fund future projects and activities. We cannot provide funding for work that has already taken place.

• Around two-thirds of our funds have a decision-making panel (family, corporate, or statutory funds) facilitated by Kent Community Foundation.

• The remaining funds are decided by Kent Community Foundation’s Grants Committee (our discretionary funds).

• Panels may meet annually or more frequently, and decisions can be made in person, by email, or virtually.

• We aim to involve external experts and people with lived experience in decision-making wherever possible.

• Micro route: Within 4-6 weeks (once we have everything we need)

• General route: 4–6 months

• Annual route: Applications remain live for 12 months, decisions can come at any point

• Other ad hoc funds as advised

We aim to release grants within one month of the award announcement.

Around 1 in 4 applications is unsuccessful, often due to eligibility, quality, or limited funds. If you’re unsuccessful, you can request feedback – we don’t provide it as standard, but we will if you ask.

Yes. Our Grant-Making Strategy explains how we prioritise funding and how we make decisions to ensure support reaches the communities that need it most. You can download it here.