wakeham trust - who we support

The Trust does not favour any particular areas of activity.

The best way to understand the kinds of projects we support is to look at the What We've Done page. However, below are outlined the general criteria we use when assessing applications.

We are very flexible and sometimes we break our own rules, but most of the projects we support share some or all of these characteristics.

It is something new for this particular area.

It doesn't matter if the idea is tried and tested in other parts of the country.

If it is new for this community then we are interested in hearing about it.
It is small.

We normally give grants to projects where an initial £75 to £750 can make a real difference to getting the project up and running.

We do not make contributions to large appeals, such as for buildings or minibuses.

We will also sometimes help established institutions that are under threat; but if so, we need to see that they have a clear strategy for overcoming the threat, and creating new opportunities in the future.
It does not employ staff.

This is partly a function of size - once a project is big enough for staff, it is probably too big for us. It is also a function of philosophy - we believe in helping ordinary people who wish to help others.

All the projects we support have, as a common theme, the empowerment of ordinary non-professional people.

There are three (rare) exceptions to this rule: we support projects which employ full time Community Service Volunteers; we support new volunteer-run ventures set up by professional organisations; and (very rarely) we support demonstration projects in education, provided there is a clear strategy for persuading others to follow the lead.
It is not well established.

Although organisations such as the Scouts, Guides and pre-school playgroups do valuable good work, they often have a network of local contacts and goodwill which can be tapped for funds.

Instead, we help those projects that are too new and experimental to get support through established fund raising channels, or which (if established) are under threat due to changes in national or local policy.

We help the underdog and the unfashionable.
It has the potential to become self-supporting.

We like to see information that shows how the project will support itself in future years or (if it is a short-life project) over the course of its life.

We need to know that the project is well planned, and that the people running it have their feet on the ground.

We also like to see that projects have done some fundraising for themselves (eg jumble sales) even if the amounts raised are small, before we commit our own funds.
It is outward looking and helps a lot of people.

We never support individuals (eg to pay for a course) and we very seldom support inward-looking groups (consciousness-raising, for example).

We like to see that the projects we help are active in the larger community and make an impact on a significant number of people for every pound we contribute.

We are especially keen to help groups who are usually considered recipients of voluntary action (for example old age pensioners or young offenders) when these people themselves become involved in helping other groups in the community.

For example, we were very pleased once to help a 'foster granny' scheme in which elderly people got together to provide childcare services to young families in their area.
It has a U.K. charity number, or can find a charity to accept funds on its behalf.

If your organisation is a U.K. registered charity, please give its full name and charity number.

If your organisation is not a registered charity, we cannot make grants directly to it (we could lose our own tax protection status).

However, we can usually get round this by making a grant to a registered charity in your area, which then will pass the money directly on to your project.

If you do not think that we can help you with your project, have a look at the Links page which lists several other charities that may be more appropriate.