Anchor's community grants

What is the community grants programme?

Our community grants programme was established for resident groups of all kinds to help you live well. Living well or ‘wellbeing’ is more than the absence of problems and illness but brings together personal and social factors too. It’s about enabling individuals and communities to do well in life and flourish which is where a grant from Anchor could help.

The fund supports a range of activities and projects from help to fund a scheme social event to redesigning an area of the scheme aiming to bring residents together and combat social isolation by improving the wellbeing of residents. 

How does it work?

Any resident, colleague or social group/association can apply for a community grant. Colleagues and residents are encouraged to work together to come up with a great project idea that requires funding to get it up and running. Residents can apply for up to £5000 on a yearly basis to support with projects in their Anchor community.

All community grant applications are reviewed by our Community Grants Panel when they meet once a year, around April, and those with successful applications will be contacted shortly afterwards.

The panel is made up of Anchor residents and colleagues who look for the ideas and initiatives that demonstrate the greatest opportunity for enhancing the quality of life for residents at our locations in line with our guidance document available below.

What can community grants be used for?

There are three categories to apply for in both our care and housing services - all reflecting different areas of wellbeing. Applications should make sure they meet at least one of the categories listed below:

•    Getting active and being connected - Arranging an event or an activity that connects residents or neighbouring estates and communities to reduce social isolation and build relationships. This could be a one-off or series of events. We encourage intergenerational events and activities and includes increasing resident engagement. Examples include reminiscence therapy, garden improvements, dance classes, computer or digital skills training.

•    Increasing resident involvement - Some residents might be unable to take part in social activities or find it difficult to be involved in decision-making about location issues due to lack of accessibility. This could be due to hearing and sight impairments, lack of wheelchair access or where English is not their first language. Your application could be for making improvements to accessibility, such as purchasing hearing loops for a common room.

•    Living well on locations and keep learning - Your project could help improve the quality of life for residents where you live, by making improvements to the environment. This could include building raised vegetable beds in a garden, creating a sensory garden, planting a wildlife area, or building a covered seating area. Other examples include learning activities or classes based around common hobbies and interests such as book groups that could support those who no longer find reading easy.

How do I apply for a grant?

**PLEASE NOTE THAT APPLICATIONS ARE CLOSED FOR 2025. THIS WILL BE REVIEWED IN MARCH 2026.** 

Download an application form here. 

Download the guidance form here. 

Having completed your application form, please remember to keep a copy for your records. Applications will be filed until the deadline date and once this has passed, the Community Grants Coordinator will forward your application to the Community Grants Panel to be considered.

If your application is unsuccessful, the Coordinator will write to you to let you know the reasons why and offer support for future applications. If successful, they will contact you to let you know the good news and explain the next steps to order the items listed in your application. 

If you would like any support with your application, please contact the Community Grants Coordinator via email at [email protected]

Join the Community Grants Panel

As we often receive more applications than we have money to allocate, we are always looking for new members to join the Community Grants Panel and help with decision-making. If you’d like to join and be part of the application review process you can contact us at [email protected].

Considering leaving a gift or donation?

You may wish to leave Anchor a charitable gift in your will or you might wish to make a donation. Regardless of the size, legacy gifts, bequests or donations are vital in helping us to continue funding great ideas for the benefit of residents living at Anchor. All donations and gifts are treated in the same way. If you want yours to be used for a specific purpose or left to a specific location, we can ensure that happens – just make sure you tell us.

We recommend you can obtain independent advice on wills, bequests and donations from the Citizens Advice Bureau or a qualified Solicitor. Anchor or Anchor colleagues cannot help draw up a will or act as a Witness or Executor.

Download our helpsheet on leaving a gift in your will to Anchor (Oct 2023)