Guidance for completing your Expression of Interest
You'll first be asked for some details about your organisation, the work that you do, your contact details and which of Esmée’s impact goals and priorities your work matches. You will then have space to give more information about your work.
- For new applicants: we want to know more about what you’re aiming to achieve and how you will make it happen with Esmée funding by answering the following two questions. Both answers are meant to be short and you will have 100 words to answer each question. We'll use your answers along with your organisation details and website, to judge whether your work is a potential match for our aims.
- What work would you like Esmée to support?
- How is your organisation well placed to deliver this change?
- For current grantees who have been invited to apply for extension funding: you will have 150 words per answer to tell us about your plans for the future and how your work has contributed to those plans so far.
Please note that you will not be able to save the form so if you’re not ready to complete your Expression of Interest, you will need to start again.
Are we the right funder for you?
It
is difficult to get funding from Esmée. The vast majority of people who
apply for our funding are not supported.
We are choosing to focus our funding on work that we believe will deliver the greatest long-term impact and create change for the future. For our grant funding, this means we are making a smaller number of larger grants with a more strategic focus, and fewer short-term or small-scale grants.
Before continuing, please check if
we are the right funder for you.
What we don't support:- Organisations
with a regular annual turnover of less than £100,000 (as reflected in the latest set of accounts)*.
- Organisations
without at least three non-executive trustees or directors.
- Organisations without an asset lock - unless they are a registered charity.
- Grants
for less than £30,000.
- Social investments for less than £100,000 or more than £2m.
- Work
that is not legally charitable.
- Work
that does not have a direct benefit in the UK.
- Grants
to individuals.
- Capital
costs including building work, renovations, and equipment (grants only, we may
make social investments for these).
- Academic research
– unless it can demonstrate real potential for
practical outcomes.
- Healthcare
with a clinical basis, including medical research, hospices, counselling and
therapy, arts therapy, education about and treatment for drug and alcohol
misuse.
- Independent education.
- Work
that is primarily the responsibility of statutory authorities.
- The advancement of religion.
* We will identify new ideas to support which are at an earlier stage and would not get through our applicant quiz. We will contact organisations proactively to apply for this support.
What we are most likely to fund:- Unusual
collaborations and ambitious partnerships which are delivering at scale and
involving or engaging a range of charity, public sector or corporate
stakeholders
- Work which makes connections across our aims: Our Natural World, A Fairer Future, and Creative, Confident Communities.
- Communities or people most affected being involved in campaigning or leading change.
- Work which uses a preventative approach.
- Work that has practical plans to achieve and sustain change over the long term.
- For social investments, the existing or potential ability to repay our investment.
- Alternative forms of investment and social investment in innovative models.
Applicants will need to show that:
- Their organisation is leading the way itself, or is part of a partnership or collaboration which is aiming for transformative change.
- The work is pioneering by breaking new ground, or using tried and tested models to push things forward in a new way.
- The work is ambitious and aiming to make a long-term impact. To be funded by Esmée, it's not enough to be keeping good things going, you need to be driving change for the future.