Financial Support to Local Charities
19 June 2020
The COVID-19 Charities Fund has been set up by the Department for Communities to provide financial support to local charities who have lost income due to the impact of COVID-19.
The fund will support groups which:
- have lost income due to the impact of lockdown and
- are unable to cover unavoidable costs until 30th September 2020
Eligibility
To be eligible, charities will have to meet the following eligibility criteria:
- You must be able to demonstrate that your fundraising or trading income has reduced due to the impact of COVID-19.
- You have unavoidable costs to cover up to 30th September that cannot be covered by existing grants or public funding and are therefore at risk of imminent collapse.
- You are not in receipt of any other COVID-19 financial support from Northern Ireland Executive.
Charities will have to show they have taken all reasonable steps to ensure their survival and have exhausted all other funding sources and are having to reduce essential services.
Grants are awarded by The National Lottery Community Fund to ensure the survival of the organisation. Awards will vary according to immediate costs only and to prevent short term closure of the charity.
Find out more
Find out more and apply for the COVID-19 Charities Fund.
Use the eligibility checking tool at the start of the application to find out if you qualify to apply. If you are eligible you can continue completing the application form.
You can also email enquiries or requests for further information to covid19charitiesfund@communities-ni.gov.uk.
Applications for the COVID-19 Charities Fund closes 4 pm on Friday 10th July.
For more information to help charities navigate their way through this health emergency, click on our article Guidance for Charities during the Coronavirus Outbreak.