Background

Trust for London is delivering this fund, in partnership with City Bridge Trust.

The Disability justice fund aims to contribute towards a strong, vibrant, diverse and sustainable movement for social justice for Deaf and Disabled Londoners. It will do this by supporting Deaf and Disabled people’s organisations (DDPOs) to become more effective, more powerful, more inclusive, more influential and more sustainable.

What the fund is for:

Funding is intended to support Deaf and Disabled People's Organisations (DPPOs) that often lack resources, connections, and skills, to create lasting change.

Funding will support organisations to create an influential disability movement where:

• Disabled people and DDPOs are regularly present in policy and decision-making spaces, invited to participate and have the capacity to engage effectively.
• Organisations and groups led by Disabled people can articulate and fight for the change they want to see without experiencing burnout.
• Campaigning is sustained, strategic, and collaborative, drawing on research, lived experience, and alliances with others.
• The full diversity of Deaf and Disabled people's experiences, perspectives, and voices are represented and heard.

How much can you apply for:

There are two levels of funding:

1. Large Grants of between £30,000 and £180,000 over a period of two to three years.
2. Development Grants of between £10,000 and £35,000 for new and small organisations.

Who Can Apply

Groups and organisations must meet the Trust's definition of DPPO:

• The management committee/board has at least 75% representation from Deaf or Disabled people.
• At least 50% of the paid staff team is Deaf or Disabled with representation at all levels of the organisation.
• The organisation provides services for, or works on behalf of, Deaf or Disabled people.

For Development grants, priority will be given to:

• Intersectional organisations led by and for Disabled people with intersecting marginalised identities (for example, Disabled Black people or Deaf LGBTQ+ people).
• Organisations led by and for people with learning difficulties.
• Organisations led by and for visually impaired people.

Restrictions

The following cannot be funded:

• Service delivery work.
• Organisations that are not DDPOs.

Eligible Expenditure

Funding will support groups working for long-term change for Deaf and Disabled Londoners. This includes:

• Campaigning and/or advocacy work that challenges injustice at a local, regional, or national level.
• New and/or creative ways of organising, mobilising, or campaigning, either by individual DDPOs or groups of organisations working together.
• Work that builds the capacity of DDPOs to campaign, influence, and mobilise more effectively, particularly intersectional organisations.
• Campaigns led by groups or coalitions of DDPOs on issues important to the disability movement, especially where change feels achievable.

How To Apply

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis until the end of 2027.

Guidance notes and an online application form is available from the Trust for London website.

https://trustforlondon.org.uk/funding/social-justice/disability-justice/

Contacts

For further information on how to obtain this fund, please contact the following:

Joanna Wootten

Trust for London

Fourth Floor, 4 Chiswell Street

London

EC1Y 4UP

Tel: 0207 606 6145

Email: joanna@trustforlondon.org.uk