Wessex Water Foundation Environment Fund

Closed. Expected to re-open: April 2025

Grant details

Grant size:Up to £2,000

Who is it for?Local groups based in Somerset that meet our minimum standards.

What is it for?To improve local biodiversity or have a positive impact on the environment for local people.

What can we use this money for?

This programme supports charitable and community activities that improve local biodiversity or have a positive impact on the environment for local people.

You can apply for a grant towards core costs and/or a project if you can demonstrate one or more of the following outcomes:

  • Involving communities in environmental activities that benefit their local area.
  • Restoring, maintaining or enhancing the local natural environment.
  • Engaging people in supporting the local natural environment.

Priorities for this programme are:

  • Reducing water use.
  • Improving environmental sustainability in the local area (reducing waste, recycling and using reusable alternatives, and using less energy and water).
  • Improving local biodiversity.

The main focus of this programme is to get positive outcomes for the environment and on activities that have a direct environmental impact. If your activity is mainly about outcomes for people, such as mental health and wellbeing, then it would be more appropriate to apply to the Wessex Water Community Fund, which opens in the autumn.

When submitting applications for projects involving practical work, please make sure you have checked whether your proposals could affect protected sites or species and demonstrate in your application how this has been accounted for. There is further guidance on Wessex Water’s website.

What can’t we use this money for?

It’s not possible to apply for:

  • Water refill points
  • General landscaping and planting
  • Funding for individuals
  • National organisations (independent branches can apply)
  • Animal welfare (except activities that directly relate to improving local biodiversity)
  • One-off events

Which groups can apply?

We can only consider your group for a grant from this funding programme if you meet our minimum standards.

Our minimum standards cover things like:

  • the types of groups we can give a grant to and how we expect them to be run
  • how we expect those groups to manage their finances
  • how those groups keep people safe.

All of our minimum standards are on our FAQs page, where you can also find lots of information about applying for funding.

In addition, for this programme we can only support groups that:

  • have an average annual income of less than £500,000 over the last 3 years
  • are based and working in the area covered by Wessex Water and SCF
  • are not receiving Partners Programme funding from Wessex Water
  • haven’t had a Wessex Water Community Fund grant in the last year.
  • are not applying to multiple Community Foundations at the same time for this funding.

When do we have to apply?

This funding programme is open once a year in April.

How likely am I to get a grant?

Sadly, we can’t provide funding to every group that applies to us.

We have around £16,000 to give out from this Fund this year. We’re usually able to support 2 out of every 3 applications we receive.

How are decisions made?

Your application will be assessed by one of our team. They’ll read through what you’ve written, look at your supporting documents, and check places like the Charity Commission and your website. We may contact you if we have any questions.

A recommendation will usually then be made, and a panel will make the final decision. The panel for this programme will include people from Wessex Water and from SCF.

How do I apply to this programme?

You can apply for a grant by clicking on the button below.

You’ll need to provide an email address and then we’ll email you a link to an online form. If you don’t see an email from us after a few minutes, then please check your spam folder.

You don’t have to complete the form in one go. Instead, you can complete some sections then click ‘save draft’ at the bottom of the page. Use the link in your email to return to the form at another time.

The form asks you to provide some information to different questions and to attach some supporting documents.

Finally, you must read the terms and conditions and click ‘submit’.

Please contact the funding programme manager, below, if you can’t use the online form, or attach any of these documents. They’ll support you to make your application in another way.

Get help with this funding programme

This funding programme is managed by Kirsty, our Senior Programmes Manager. Kirsty can help if you:

  • aren’t sure if you meet our standards
  • aren’t sure if this is the best fund to apply for
  • can’t use our online form, need extra support with your application or if English isn’t your first language
  • can’t attach the documents we’ve asked for.
Kirsty Campbell (She/Her)
Senior Programmes Manager
Working days: Mon - Fri, 8am - 1pm
Closed. Expected to re-open: April 2025

Grant details

Grant size:Up to £2,000

Who is it for?Local groups based in Somerset that meet our minimum standards.

What is it for?To improve local biodiversity or have a positive impact on the environment for local people.

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FAQs

You can find our minimum standards and everything else you need to know about applying on our FAQs page.

Browse our FAQs