Please note this grant scheme is now closed
The Large Grant Scheme fund aimed to support local organisations in creating new jobs, learning, training, and educational programmes through arts, culture, innovation, public realm, and creative placemaking in Hackney, Newham, Waltham Forest, and Tower Hamlets.
The Large Grant Scheme accepted applications of up to £50,000 from schools and non-profit organisations, with a specific emphasis on building stronger, equitable partnerships.
The Large Grant Scheme was part of the Westfield East Bank Creative Futures Fund, an ambitious five-year programme that aimed to invest £10 million into the local communities of Newham, Tower Hamlets, Hackney, and Waltham Forest, funded by Westfield Stratford City.
The scheme funded projects that focused on one or more of the following themes:
Employment opportunities
Projects aimed to provide employment opportunities for local people, including access to paid work experience or internships, apprenticeships, or pathways to jobs.
Learning opportunities
Projects aimed to provide opportunities and mobility through learning and training for local people, including lifelong learning from early education through to late career and post-retirement, as well as bespoke career or higher education path support, training, and secondments.
Young people
Projects sought to adopt a young person–led approach, providing local young people with broader skills development opportunities, careers workshops, related learning, and/or one-to-one coaching and mentoring.
Business and entrepreneur support
Projects offered local people opportunities for business or entrepreneur support, including freelance, business, and entrepreneurial setup, development, and training.
We recognised that these four overarching areas covered a broad spectrum. To support clarity around the outcomes expected from the grants, we developed a user-centred process.
Outcomes represented the short-, medium-, or long-term goals of a project that led to meaningful impacts in local communities. Applicants were asked to identify a set number of outcomes their projects would achieve, based on the grant scheme applied for.
We provided a list of 13 short-, medium-, and long-term outcomes for selection:
Short-Term Outcomes
Participants gained technical, sector-specific, and/or creative skills
Participants gained essential skills
Participants grew their networks and awareness of local opportunities
Participants gained confidence in their potential and self-initiative
Participants were better equipped to process difficult emotions
Participants were equipped to act as agents of change in their boroughs
Organisations and schools were exposed to creative approaches to wellbeing
Medium/Long-Term Outcomes
Increased employability of participants
Increased capacity for innovation and entrepreneurship
Increased diversity in the creative/entrepreneurial sector in the boroughs
More diverse audiences engaged with the cultural sector and benefited from community assets or services
Participants acted as agents of change within the local community
Organisations and schools integrated creative approaches within their projects
In applications, we required applicants to explain the need for their project, how it had been identified, and how local people or lived experience had been involved in planning and developing the proposed activities. Organisations needed to demonstrate strong links and networks within the community to deliver activities and collaboratively achieve the proposed outcomes.
Projects that considered the following were also weighted more favourably:
Community engagement and consultation
Sustainability of:
Projects – development of new ideas and leveraging of other funding
Organisations – learning areas, best practice development, and organisational growth
Participants – longer-term opportunities, follow-up support, paid work, further training, and/or education
Case studies featured Year 2 grantees Eastside, Loop Labs, and True Cadence. The film was produced and directed by Chris Baker, with editing by Will Cole and colour grading by Harvey Gibson.
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Here’s a polished past-tense rewrite of your text, keeping the meaning intact and flowing smoothly:
The Large Grant Scheme focused on projects around the four themes of employment opportunities, learning opportunities, young people, and business and entrepreneurial support within the boroughs of Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets, and Waltham Forest. Proposals from schools, groups, and non-profit organisations were all welcomed, but a partnership and/or consortium approach to the project had to be demonstrated.
The Fund aimed to create inclusive and sustainable opportunities. We were keen to support a range of activities and innovative ideas that drove the proposed outcomes. The Foundation for Future London strongly advocated the ability of creativity to enable levelling-up opportunities and contribute to the London economy. Consequently, we were eager to fund project activity that originated in:
Arts, Culture, Heritage
Skills & Jobs
Business & Start-Up
Community
Creative Ideas
Digital
Collaboration
Diversity & Inclusion
Intergenerational
Health, Wellbeing & Environment
Education
Creative, Inclusive Public Realm and/or Placemaking
Covid-19 Recovery
In addition, we expected to see the following focus:
Large Grants:
Stronger, equitable partnership building
Equality, diversity, and inclusion were at the forefront of the Foundation’s grant giving. We actively encouraged applications from all communities, including Black, Asian, and ethnically diverse individuals, disabled people, learning disabled individuals, the unemployed and/or low-waged, people without qualifications, vulnerably housed individuals, Gypsies and Travellers, LGBTQ+ people, children and young people, older adults, and people with mental health or long-term health issues.
We aimed to ensure funding opportunities reached a wide audience and supported locally rooted charities and community-focused initiatives. We also encouraged applications from individuals and organisations led by local people whose projects engaged and served East London’s diverse communities.
To better understand the support areas and beneficiaries the Foundation’s funding sought to target, applicants could refer to our list of groups in the Guidance Notes.
Large Grant Scheme projects were required to demonstrate a minimum of five medium- or long-term outcomes from our list of 13 short, medium, or long-term goals, which collectively aimed to create a meaningful impact for communities in the local boroughs. The full list was available in our Guidance Notes.
Audiences
Applicants were asked to read our Guidance Notes before applying.
We used our grant management software, Flexigrant, for online Expressions of Interest and applications: foundationforfuturelondon.flexigrant.com.
The link was also accessible via the Large Grant scheme webpage.
Additional criteria:
A partnership and/or consortium approach to the project had to be evidenced and was essential for being awarded a large grant. If local borough or East Bank Partners applied, the partnership had to be strong, with an equitable budget split between the project’s partners. Organisations that had not yet considered a partnership project were encouraged to come together and explore this through the partnership training workshop offered.
Schools applying had to evidence that the funding applied for would not be used for core school day/curriculum activity.
Applicants seeking the maximum level of funding had to evidence why the full amount was needed and where it would be used.
Only organisations that had attended one of the workshops were accepted to apply for Large Grants to ensure understanding of expected outcomes. Successful Expressions of Interest led to an invitation to meet with a team member to discuss the project.
Applications for re-funding of existing Foundation-funded projects had to provide strong evidence of previous impact, ongoing need, and demonstrate a compelling case for project development, growth, and future sustainability plans.
Timeline:
Year 5 was announced in spring 2024, including timeline information.
Capacity Building Programme workshops:
For help and advice on applying to the Large Grant Scheme, organisations and individuals could sign up to the Capacity Building Programme events, run in partnership with award-winning social entrepreneur Lisa Stepanovic.
Booking links were available via Eventbrite.
All events were free and open to individuals, organisations, and businesses working and living in the London Boroughs of Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets, and Waltham Forest.
Review Process:
Expressions of Interest were carefully reviewed by two team members and evaluated against the four core Foundation themes and suggested expected impact. Those shortlisted were invited to complete a full application.
Full applications were then shortlisted internally via our online system and reviewed by three team members. Final awarding decisions were made by an impartially selected community panel, who had gone through an application process to join the panel. The panel’s decisions were ratified by the Foundation’s Board of Trustees. On occasion, further information was requested to determine the outcome of any application. Feedback was given to all applicants initially via the Capacity Building Programme workshop, followed by potential one-to-one requests, with the level of feedback dependent on the size of grant applied for.
Access Support & Flexigrant Technical Support:
For access support or technical support using the Flexigrant online application system, applicants were instructed to email:
Grants@future.london