Community Foundation for Wiltshire & Swindon grants
Community Foundation for Wiltshire & Swindon funds grassroots and small to medium-sized organisations working with people on low incomes in Wiltshire and Swindon.
Guidance last checked 16 July 2026· from the funder’s own website
Overview
Between 60 and 70 per cent of applications to Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation succeed, which is unusually generous odds for a grant-maker. It focuses on supporting grassroots and small to medium-sized organisations that are working with people on low incomes. Its governing objects set its area of benefit as the community in the County of Wiltshire and the Borough of Swindon and its immediate neighbourhood. The objects also allow other charitable purposes across the UK, with a preference for that area, and the Charity Commission register describes its reach as throughout England and Wales. It runs several programmes. One supports charitable and community activities that focus on science, technology, engineering, maths and the environment, such as renewable energy, ecology or habitat conservation. It also runs programmes for individuals, so check which programme fits before you apply.
What they fund
The register records general charitable purposes alongside poverty relief, community development, housing, education and training, and disability. The foundation's own focus is grassroots and small to medium-sized organisations working with people on low incomes.
Who and where
Its governing objects set its area of benefit as the County of Wiltshire and the Borough of Swindon and its immediate neighbourhood, while the register lists it as operating throughout England and Wales.
Who they help
Where they fund
What Community Foundation for Wiltshire & Swindon 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.
What they say they're looking for
“This programme supports charitable and community activities that focus on science, technology, engineering, maths and the environment such as renewable energy, ecology or habitat conservation.”
Source: wscf.org.uk — Groups | Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation →
“We focus on supporting grassroots and small to medium-sized organisations that are working with people on low incomes.”
Source: wscf.org.uk — Groups | Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation →
Who they say they'll fund
“Applicants must have lived in Wiltshire or Swindon for the last two years”
Source: wscf.org.uk — Individuals | Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation →
“This programme is open to young people aged between 14 and 24 (at the time of when applications are considered)”
Source: wscf.org.uk — Individuals | Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation →
Income limits they mention
“either they or their parents/carers must be in receipt of means tested benefits.”
Source: wscf.org.uk — Individuals | Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation →
How they say to apply
“The panel will usually meet around 8-10 weeks after the programme's application closing date.”
Source: wscf.org.uk — Grants overview | Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation →
“The success rate for applications to Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation is between 60-70%.”
Source: wscf.org.uk — Grants overview | Wiltshire and Swindon Community Foundation →
Their charitable objects
As registered with the Charity Commission (their formal purposes):
I) the promotion of any charitable purposes for the community in the county of wiltshire and the borough of swindon and its immediate neighbourhood ("the area of benefit"), and (ii) other exclusively charitable purposes in the united kingdom which are in the opinion of the trustees beneficial to the community with a…
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 the Community Foundation give?
It does not publish a single grant range, because it runs several programmes with different rules, and it does not publish a typical award. Check the amounts on the individual programme pages. For scale, its most recent published accounts record £2,616,490 in grants to organisations.
What does it fund?
It focuses on grassroots and small to medium-sized organisations working with people on low incomes. One of its programmes supports charitable and community activities focused on science, technology, engineering, maths and the environment, such as renewable energy, ecology or habitat conservation. The register also records poverty relief, community development, housing, education and training, and disability.
Who can apply?
Grassroots and small to medium-sized organisations working with people on low incomes. It also runs programmes for individuals. For those it says applicants must have lived in Wiltshire or Swindon for the last two years, and that either they or their parents or carers must be in receipt of means tested benefits. One vocational training programme is open to young people aged between 14 and 24 at the time applications are considered.
What are my chances?
Better than at most grant-makers: it publishes a success rate of between 60 and 70 per cent for applications to the foundation.
How do I apply?
Applications go to a named programme with its own closing date, and the panel will usually meet around 8 to 10 weeks after that closing date. Check the funder's own website (www.wscf.org.uk) and its Charity Commission entry (charity number 1123126) for the programmes currently open, as processes can change.
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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 Community Foundation for Wiltshire & Swindon.