We want to fund projects and activities which make a real difference to people’s lives in all the countries in which The Access Group operates.

If your organisation can make a real and measurable impact in one of the areas we are interested in, then please apply for a grant.

The Access Foundation is offering grants to tackle digital inequality.

The Access Foundation is focused on awarding grants that are specifically oriented around the following :
• to mitigate the digital divide by making computing facilities, support and learning available to disadvantaged and vulnerable people.
• to advance the charitable causes of registered charities which are chosen as the “Access Group Company Charity of the Year” (or, with independent determination by the trustees, to support registered charities which were shortlisted by the Access Group for benefit but which were not subsequently chosen).
• to advance the charitable causes of charities and not for profit organisations for whom there is a strong emotional connection with a member of staff (e.g. through support they or a close relative have received from the charity)

In all these cases, grants are restricted to charities or not for profit organisations operating in the same countries as the offices of Access Group companies.

 Priorities for support

The number of applications which can be supported by the Foundation is, by necessity, limited to the amount of funds available for distribution in line with the Foundation’s general reserves policy. The Board of Trustees will set-aside an annual budget for grant giving which will be reviewed at least bi-annually to ensure appropriate allocation of resources.
In the case of a surplus of applications which meet all the criteria within a budgeting year, the Board of Trustees will decide the prioritisation for allocating funds on a case-by-case basis but will endeavour to offer funds to organisations covering all three of the objectives stated above.

 Principles

In awarding grants, the Trustees will apply the following principles:
1 Applications from any geographical area within which The Access group operate are eligible.
2 Applications may only be made by bona fide charities, not for profit organisations (including Community Interest Companies (“CICs”) that are limited by guarantee but excluding CICs limited by shares), but not individuals.
3 Applications must be for specific services, activities, initiatives or projects with clearly identified and measurable outcomes. Funding will not be provided for the general overheads or operational costs of an organisation. Grants will, therefore, be given on a restricted fund basis.
4 The Trustees will undertake any required due diligence ensure that the purpose for which the grant is being given is exclusively charitable for the public benefit according to the laws of England and Wales. Consequently, additional due diligence may be required in respect of potential grant recipients that are not recognised as charities in England and Wales.
5 While there is no definitive maximum or minimum value for the grants we will award, the expected ranges are different depending on the grant-giving objective as follows:
5.1 for mitigating the digital divide, the Foundation will generally award grants between £25,000 and £100,000. This funding will normally support a project that completes within a 12 month period. By exception the Foundation may consider supporting a longer running multi-year project and in such cases would entertain applications with proportionately larger values;
5.2 for grants awarded to the Access Group Charity of the Year, the awards will vary significantly depending on the size of the geographic division within the group
5.3 for grants awarded to Access staff-sponsored charities, the Foundation will generally awards grants in the region of £5,000 to £10,000.
These values are indicators only and are not set in stone so the Trustees would encourage any potential applicant to contact the Foundation with proposals if they are outside of these parameters.
6 All applications from previous recipients of grants or from previously unsuccessful applicants will be considered by the Foundation on their own merits. Although the Foundation will have regard to the outcome of the previous application, any new application will in no way receive preferential or adverse consideration.