Funding provides a great opportunity for your club or centre to improve facilities or take on a new project – there is a vast range of options available. But where do you start? Our toolkit below provides all the information you need, including where to look for available grants and how to successfully apply for these.
Before applying for funding, there are some basic eligibility requirements you need to have in place.
Most funding opportunities are open to certain types of not-for-profit organisations such as charities, community interest companies (CIC), community interest organisations (CIO) or community amateur sports clubs (CASC). Funding from the National Lottery, Sport England, Sport Wales and Sport Scotland may also fund companies limited by guarantee with a not-for-profit statement, but you would need to check with any potential funders before applying.
We're not currently aware of any grant funding being available for limited liability partnerships or sole traders.
We recommend you take independent business advice in relation to company structure if you're considering making any changes as there are likely to be other impacts to your business. We have two eLearning modules which include useful information on governance and legal structures.
A clear governing document (e.g. a constitution or articles of association) is essential when applying for funding, as it sets out your organisation’s purpose, how it is run, and who is responsible for decision making. Funders use it to confirm that your organisation is properly constituted and eligible to receive grants. Make sure your document reflects your current activities and includes appropriate charitable or community aims.
A dedicated organisational bank account is a key requirement for most funding applications, as funders need to see that grant money will be managed transparently and separately from personal finances. The account should be in the name of the organisation. It's good practice to have at least two unrelated authorised signatories and clear financial controls in place to manage income and expenditure responsibly.
Check out these resources which can support you: Buddle from Sport England; Club Support from Sport Wales; and Clubs from Sport Scotland provide plenty of advice on how to run your organisation, including applying for funding.
One of the first places to start is with a funding search. There are a number of search tools you can try:
Keep a list of all grants available for your organisation, where you think you have a good fit with their objectives. We’ve pulled a list together to get you started with some capital (for equipment and facilities) and revenue (for projects costs and delivery) funders:
This is by no means exhaustive and appropriate funding often depends on the nature of the project you'd like funded.
For funding opportunities in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, click on the links below:
British Equestrian has collated a number of useful resources to support centres with preparing a funding application.
The Movement Fund offers grants up to £15,000 for projects which focus on improving access to physical activity. A number of equestrian centres have been successful with this fund and we're keen to support more applications.
Get Grants delivered two corporate fundraising sessions for British Equestrian. If this is an area of interest, you can access the session content below:
As a BHS Approved Centre, employers benefit from:
British Horse Society aims to increase the number of qualified BHS Coaches across the UK, from those individuals currently working at BHS Approved Centres. The BHS Career Transition Fund is designed to support individuals who have obtained BHS Stage 1 (or Equivalent), to train for BHS qualifications at Stage 2 and Stage 3.
ABRS+ offer a number of webinars and workshops around funding and fundraising.
Get Grants provide practical support, advice, and information to grant fundraisers and grant makers. Providing, free resources, networking events, funding finder and online training courses. The Funding Finder is a free resource for grant fundraisers with information on hundreds of grant funders, including what they fund, how much they give and how to apply.
Become a member of Sported and receive free finance and fundraising support through monthly funding e-bulletins, bespoke funding reports or funding application feedback.
In England, the local Active Partnership in your county will be able to signpost you to other opportunities in your area.
You're all set, good luck! Now you've got the knowledge and tools you need, it's time to take the next step and start securing funding for your club or centre.
We’re here to support you, so please keep in touch. We’d really value hearing about your successes and any challenges.
For more assistance regarding funding, you can email funding.support@bef.co.uk.