The total funding available for Lewisham’s Main Grants Programme for the 2026–2029 cycle is £2,112,308. From this total, £600,000 has been set aside for the commissioning of advice services, leaving £1,512,308 for the remainder of the programme.
Neighbourhood Infrastructure and Capacity Building
A total of £900,000 per annum is available across four neighbourhoods. However, we expect that some neighbourhoods will have greater needs in some areas and some may be awarded higher levels of funding than others. The four neighbourhood areas (North, South, East, and West) consist of different numbers of wards and currently have varying levels of support, capacity, and infrastructure. Therefore, the model of support proposed in each neighbourhood may differ because each area has unique needs that require different levels of infrastructure support. We expect the North and South neighbourhoods to have a higher level of need and as such expect that the model will require more capacity building, networking and development in these neighbourhoods.
As a result we expect grants to be in the region of £210,000 - £240,000 per neighbourhood per annum. See Fund criteria on pages 6-7 for further detail.
Borough-wide Infrastructure and Capacity Building Main Grants
For any of the following priority areas, you may apply for up to £50,000:
- Lewisham’s Black-led Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS)
- Digital inclusion (as well as helping residents access and use digital tools)
- Adults with learning disabilities
- LGBTQ+ residents
- Sanctuary seekers
- Sports
Arts Main Grants
For the arts infrastructure and capacity building priority you may apply for up to £80,000
For grants to support Lewisham’s Cultural Strategy you may apply for up to £30,000.
Transition Main Grants
Transition grants are only open to organisations currently funded by the Lewisham Main Grant up until 31 March 2025.
Applicants can bid for funding up to the value of their existing grants, however we encourage applicants to consider requesting less than their current amount to enable us to support more of our grant-funded organisations.