Buckinghamshire Community Foundation grants
Buckinghamshire Community Foundation makes grants, and loans, to formally constituted not-for-profit organisations operating for the benefit of Buckinghamshire residents.
Guidance last checked 16 July 2026· from the funder’s own website
Overview
Heart of Bucks is the working name of Buckinghamshire Community Foundation, and it offers loans as well as grants. Grant applications must come from organisations which are formally constituted, not-for-profit, and operating for the benefit of Buckinghamshire residents. Applicants need a minimum of three independent and unrelated directors or trustees. It will not fund organisations or projects operating solely outside Buckinghamshire, including Milton Keynes, and it does not fund individuals. For grants, a decision will be made in line with the criteria and usually within two months of the application deadline. It reviews loan applications regularly, and there are no deadlines for those.
What they fund
These are the purposes recorded for the Foundation on the Charity Commission register, which closely follow its own objects.
Who and where
The register records the charity as working throughout England and Wales, but its own grants pages are tighter: applications must be for the benefit of Buckinghamshire residents, and it does not fund organisations or projects operating solely outside Buckinghamshire, including Milton Keynes.
Who they help
Where they fund
What Buckinghamshire Community Foundation says in its own guidance
Quoted directly from the funder’s own website, with a link to the page each quote came from. Always the most current word is theirs — check the source before you apply.
Who they say they'll fund
“A minimum of three independent and unrelated directors/trustees”
Source: heartofbucks.org — The Application Process - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
“Grant applications must come from organisations which are formally constituted, not-for-profit, and operating for the benefit of Buckinghamshire residents.”
Source: heartofbucks.org — Grants - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
What they say they won't fund
“Schools and private education organisations”
Source: heartofbucks.org — Grants - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
“Organisations and/or projects operating solely outside of Buckinghamshire, including Milton Keynes”
Source: heartofbucks.org — Grants - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
“Retrospective funding”
Source: heartofbucks.org — Grants - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
“Organisations whose principle concern is animal welfare”
Source: heartofbucks.org — Grants - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
“Individuals”
Source: heartofbucks.org — Grants - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
“Activities promoting a particular religious or political belief”
Source: heartofbucks.org — Grants - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
“Statutory organisations (with the exception of parish councils)”
Source: heartofbucks.org — Grants - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
Deadlines they mention
“We review loan applications regularly and there are no deadlines.”
Source: heartofbucks.org — Loans - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
How they say to apply
“a decision will be made in-line with the criteria and usually within two months of the application deadline”
Source: heartofbucks.org — The Application Process - Heart of Bucks Community Foundation →
Their charitable objects
As registered with the Charity Commission (their formal purposes):
The charity’s charitable purposes (‘purposes’ in this document), also it’s objects for the purposes of company law, are specifically restricted to the following:to promote or advance any charitable purpose for the benefit of the county of buckinghamshire or other such regions of the united kingdom as may be benefited…
How to approach them
Start with the official sources — they’re always more current than any directory, including this one.
Common questions
How much does Buckinghamshire Community Foundation give?
We do not have sourced grant sizes for this funder, so we cannot give a figure or a range here. For scale, its most recent Charity Commission return records £2,249,145 in grants to organisations. It runs more than one fund, so check the amount shown for the fund you want on its own website.
What does Buckinghamshire Community Foundation fund?
Its objects are to promote or advance any charitable purpose for the benefit of the county of Buckinghamshire, or other regions of the UK benefited by a fund it manages. Named purposes include the prevention or relief of poverty, education, health and the saving of lives, and citizenship and community development. They also include arts, culture, heritage and science, amateur sport, human rights and equality, and environmental protection. Finally they cover relief of those in need by reason of youth, age, ill-health, disability or financial hardship, and the efficiency of the armed forces and emergency services.
Who can apply?
Organisations which are formally constituted, not-for-profit, and operating for the benefit of Buckinghamshire residents. It also asks for a minimum of three independent and unrelated directors or trustees.
What won't Buckinghamshire Community Foundation fund?
Individuals, and organisations whose principle concern is animal welfare. Activities promoting a particular religious or political belief. Statutory organisations, with the exception of parish councils, and schools and private education organisations. Retrospective funding. And organisations or projects operating solely outside of Buckinghamshire, including Milton Keynes.
How do I apply?
For grants, a decision will be made in line with the criteria and usually within two months of the application deadline. For loans, it reviews applications regularly and there are no deadlines. Check the funder's own website (www.heartofbucks.org) and its Charity Commission entry (charity number 1073861) for current deadlines and guidance, as processes can change.
Is your charity a fit for Buckinghamshire Community Foundation?
Type your charity’s name and we’ll check this funder — and every other active UK grant-maker — against your purposes, your area and your size. Free, and nothing to fill in: we read your entry on the official register.
Check my charity’s matches — free →Thinking of applying? Start here.
Finding a funder is the easy part. These short guides help with the part that decides whether you get the money.
Contains public sector information from the Charity Commission for England and Wales licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0, and grants data from 360Giving used under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. Figures are derived (filtered and summarised by TrusteeMeetings), not republished unchanged. About the data · Terms of use. This page is a starting point for your own research, not a promise of funding, and is not endorsed by or affiliated with Buckinghamshire Community Foundation.