A grant-making trust or foundation is a body set up to make grants for charitable purposes

According to the The Charities Aid Foundation, there are around 9,000 grant-making trusts in the UK, giving in total about £2.6 billion each year to charitable causes.

Usually, money (capital) is invested and the income from the investment is distributed in grants, although some trusts (e.g. BBC Children In Need, Comic Relief) raise funds themselves and make grants from the proceeds of their appeals.

Charitable trusts are diverse, independent and quirky. Some are secretive even furtive, some are innovative, some stick to an unchanging list of charities and others seek new projects and areas of interest to support. It is therefore important to know as much as possible about the charitable trusts from which you are seeking support.

In researching available information on charitable trusts, the following factors should be taken into account:- 

The character of a charitable trust is principally shaped by the legal document (trust deed) setting it up. In many cases, this is restrictive. Today many trusts are drawn up with wider objects so that they are capable of re­interpretation. Those with 'general charitable purposes' can fund anything deemed to be charitable.

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Charitable trusts usually formulate a policy to guide them in the spending of their income. Ask for the most up-to-date policy guidelines to be sent to you as they are helpful indicators of the type of grants made.

The income of trusts varies enormously from several million to a few hundred pounds.

Geographical Area of Benefit

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Many trusts are restricted to a particular geographical area.

The sort of people whom the trust was set up to benefit e.g. young people, single parents, people with disabilities.

Trustees

The Trustees of charitable trusts are a very mixed assortment of individuals.  They can be peers of the realm, company directors, members of the Founders family, businessmen, churchmen etc. but they are all volunteers with a variety of charitable motivations. Bear all this in mind as it will affect their outlook and the projects they are likely to support. If you happen to know a Trustee of a trust, tell him or her that you are applying. In general, however, you should always deal with a trust through its designated secretary or correspondent.

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The larger trusts employ their own staff, but many of the smaller trusts may be run from someone’s home or via an accountants or lawyers, so their administrative capacity is limited.

The sheer volume of applications, however, means that most do not normally acknowledge applications and many are unable to reply to applicants who are ultimately unsuccessful. If you want to be sure of an acknowledgement, send a SAE with your application.

What is the average size of grant the trust usually makes? Are grants made over a number of years?

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How often, and when, do the Trustees meet to consider applications? How long does it usually take to process applications? 

Is the work of your organisation appropriate to the work of the charitable trust? Many trusts, provided they have the capacity, welcome preliminary telephone calls as it helps them and the applicants, by reducing the number of ineligible applications. If a telephone is listed USE IT, if you are unsure whether your project fits the funders criteria.

Armed with up-to-date information you can begin making your approaches.

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