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Frequently asked questions

We’re delighted to announce that we are open for applications from Monday 16 June (9am). We will open for 2 weeks. To give everyone a fair chance, regardless of the volume of applications, we will stay open until Friday 27 June (5pm). We are a small team and have designed a process that as administratively manageable as possible.

We are only accepting applications from projects that work with young people on this occasion.

 

To apply, firstly take our eligibility quiz. If you are eligible, you’ll be sent to the application form – it’s that simple!

You have from Monday 16 June (9am) – Friday 27 June (5pm) to complete the application.

We don’t share the application form prior to opening. But for your information, these are the questions we are asking.

  • Applicant name
  • Organisation name
  • Type of organisation
  • What is your registered number? Who are you registered with? (20 words)
  • Where is your work carried out in Britain?
  • How long has your organisation been established?
  • What impact do you have? (200 words)
  • Please describe what your organisation does and the project you would like funded. (100 words)
  • Who benefits from your work? (200 words)
  • Approximately how many beneficiaries do you work with?
  • How do you measure success? (200 words)
  • What are the key risks to your organisation and what are you doing to mitigate those risks? (200 words)
  • How diverse is your funding base? (200 words)
  • What is your reserves policy and are you achieving it? (200 words)
  • Marketing contact details
  • Project title
  • Project description (200 words)
  • What do you aim to achieve with this project? (200 words)
  • How were service users or other relevant stakeholders involved in planning and developing your proposal? (200 words)
  • Are there any special considerations (e.g. around the safety of users, staff or volunteers) and how will these be managed? (200 words)
  • Where will the work take place? (50 words)
  • How will you monitor progress and evaluate results? (250 words)
  • Summary budget
  • Project start date
  • Project end date

You can only apply through the online application form. To get to the form please go through the eligibility quiz . If you are eligible, the link to the form will appear.

We have tried to make the application form as simple as possible. This is what you can expect:

  • 14 questions about your organisation
  • 8 questions about the specific project you want us to fund
Most questions have a maximum work count of 200, some just need a few words. We are very happy for lists of bullet points. If you want to check the questions, please check our apply page.

We will mostly support voluntary organisations. The voluntary sector, often referred to as the third sector, includes organisations that are non-profit-making and operate for the benefit of the public or specific groups of people.  Voluntary sector organisations often focus on charitable, social, educational, environmental, cultural, or recreational purposes and operate independently of the government, even though they may receive government grants or contracts.

Many voluntary organisations depend on volunteers and may be structured as:

  • Charities or Community Interest Companies (CICs)
  • Community groups, such as local clubs and associations (for example, youth groups and environmental clubs)
  • Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs)
  • Social enterprises, businesses with a social or environmental purpose
  • Faith-based organisations

No.

We have outlined themes we are interested in supporting. The first open round is under the theme ‘young people’. We will direct funding to other areas later in the year. If you are a voluntary organisation that has projects that cover a broad range of themes you may find multiple opportunities to apply over the year.

This is our first year of operating and we are working to understand where we need to distribute funding to make the most difference. This means that we cannot tell you now what each round will be and who we will support. We understand that this may be frustrating for you. Over time we aim to give more notice about grant rounds and themes.

We do not have the resources to process the volume we believe we would receive. Unlike some funders, we have decided to stay open for two weeks regardless of volume of applications. We think this is fairest approach.

We recently surveyed our database and asked people to let us know which of our funding themes their work covered. Almost 1,000 people responded, and ‘Young People’ came out as the theme that the majority identified with. This is why we have chosen this theme for our first open round.

We are not funding capital projects in this round.

If you are applying for funding for a project where young people aged from 0 – 25 are the main beneficiaries, you can apply.

You will need:

  • Annual Accounts audited or independently reviewed
  • Certificate of Incorporation
  • Governing Document
  • Current budget and latest management accounts
  • Safeguarding if applicable (if you are applying for funding to work with vulnerable adults and children will always be applicable)
  • Job description if applicable

This the first time we have run an open round and we know we are likely to receive a high volume of applications. We will be shortlisting during July and August and successful applicants will be contacted by the end of September 2025 by email.

We are a small team and therefore will be unable to give feedback on unsuccessful applications.

Absolutely! If you need additional support to complete the form or need to receive it in a different format, please contact us.

The Health Lottery Foundation distributes money raised by The Health Lottery players. A minimum of 20% of every lottery draw ticket and online scratch card purchased goes towards good causes. From 23 January 2025, The Health Lottery will operate on behalf of The Health Lottery Foundation. We are responsible for making sure that the money flows into communities in a way that makes a real difference to people’s lives.