Every fund re-checked at source on 15 August 2026

Sports club funding finder: which grants can your club get?

Two national funds take applications from clubs all year round, and between them they cover almost everything a small club needs: £300 to £15,000 from Sport England's Movement Fund, and £300 to £20,000 from National Lottery Awards for All. Both were showing as open when we checked them on 15 August 2026. Answer a few questions to see which fits, and what to do if neither does.

£300 to £15,000

Sport England Movement Fund, no submission deadline, decision usually in six to eight weeks

Sport England

£300 to £20,000

National Lottery Awards for All, open in all four nations, projects up to 2 years

The National Lottery Community Fund

Facilities only

Football Foundation grants cover pitches and buildings, and expressly do not fund kit and equipment

Football Foundation

Question 1

Where is the club?

Sport funding is run nation by nation. Awards for All runs in all four, but the sports agencies are separate.

Club and community funding: what was open on 15 August 2026

Last updated 2026-08-15

The national funds a sports or community club can apply to, with the amounts and timings each funder publishes. Where we could not confirm a fund's status at source, the row says so rather than implying it is open.

Each row was opened and read on the funder's own website on 15 August 2026: sportengland.org for the Movement Fund, tnlcommunityfund.org.uk for the four Awards for All programmes and Reaching Communities England, footballfoundation.org.uk for the Football Foundation's list of what it funds and does not fund, sportscotland.org.uk and sportni.net for the devolved sports agencies. Amounts and decision times are quoted only where the funder publishes them on that page. Grant programmes open and close constantly, so treat this as a snapshot on the date given and re-check the funder's own page before applying.

Club and community funding: what was open on 15 August 2026
Fund	Who it is for	Amount	Status and timing on 15 August 2026
Sport England Movement Fund	Physical activity projects in England, prioritising people who face barriers to being active	£300 to £15,000, as a grant or a crowdfunding pledge	Open, no submission deadline. Apply at least 12 weeks before starting; decision usually in six to eight weeks; projects up to 12 months
National Lottery Awards for All England	Community projects in England, including clubs	£300 to £20,000	Open to applications. Decision in 16 weeks; projects up to 2 years
National Lottery Awards for All Scotland	Community projects in Scotland	£300 to £20,000	Open to applications. Decision in 12 weeks
National Lottery Awards for All Wales	Community projects in Wales	£300 to £20,000	Open to applications. Decision in 12 weeks; projects up to 2 years
National Lottery Awards for All Northern Ireland	Community projects in Northern Ireland	£300 to £20,000	Open to applications. Decision in 12 weeks; projects up to 2 years
Reaching Communities England	Larger community projects in England	£20,001 to £20,000,000	Open to applications. Decision in 40 weeks; projects up to 5 years
Football Foundation grants	Grassroots football facilities in England, available for community use	Varies by programme; not a single published range	Programme list live. Each grant opens and closes separately, so check the individual grant page. Does not fund kit and equipment
sportscotland funding programmes	Clubs, coaches and facilities in Scotland	Not quoted here: we did not read the amounts at source	Sport Facilities Fund, coach education subsidy and a funder directory listed on the funding page. Check each fund's own page for status
Sport Northern Ireland funding programmes	Clubs, athletes and governing bodies in Northern Ireland	Not quoted here: we did not read the amounts at source	Programme list published on the funding page. Check each programme page for current status
Sport Wales grant schemes	Clubs in Wales	Not known	Status not confirmed: the Sport Wales website did not respond when we checked on 15 August 2026. Go to Sport Wales directly

Sport England's Movement Fund takes applications all year with no submission deadline, offering grants or crowdfunding pledges of £300 to £15,000 for projects lasting up to 12 months, with a decision usually within six to eight weeks.
National Lottery Awards for All offers £300 to £20,000 in all four UK nations and was showing as open to applications in each of them on 15 August 2026, with decisions quoted at 16 weeks in England and 12 weeks in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Football Foundation funds grassroots football facilities in England but expressly does not fund kit and equipment, facilities that are not available for community use, retrospective work, routine maintenance or facility hire.

Cite this page

“Club and community funding: what was open on 15 August 2026”, Club Grants, https://clubgrants.co.uk/ (updated 2026-08-15). Each row was opened and read on the funder's own website on 15 August 2026: sportengland.org for the Movement Fund, tnlcommunityfund.org.uk for the four Awards for All programmes and Reaching Communities England, footballfoundation.org.uk for the Football Foundation's list of what it funds and does not fund, sportscotland.org.uk and sportni.net for the devolved sports agencies. Amounts and decision times are quoted only where the funder publishes them on that page. Grant programmes open and close constantly, so treat this as a snapshot on the date given and re-check the funder's own page before applying.

Scope of this checker

Sport England Movement Fund (grants and crowdfunding pledges)
National Lottery Awards for All in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
Reaching Communities England for larger projects
Football Foundation facility grants for grassroots football
sportscotland and Sport Northern Ireland funding routes
What to do when your project is too small, too big or the wrong shape
Status and amounts re-read on each funder's own site on 15 August 2026

Club Grants is an independent information site operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd. It is not affiliated with Sport England, The National Lottery Community Fund, the Football Foundation, sportscotland, Sport Northern Ireland, Sport Wales or any other funder, and nothing here is financial or legal advice. Every fund named was re-read on the funder's own website on the date shown at the top of this page, and where we could not confirm a fund's status we say so rather than implying it is open. Funding programmes open and close constantly: always check the funder's own page for current status, amounts and eligibility before you apply.

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The questions we get

What grants can a sports club apply for?

Two national funds cover most small club needs. Sport England's Movement Fund offers £300 to £15,000 in England with no submission deadline. National Lottery Awards for All offers £300 to £20,000 across all four UK nations. Grassroots football facilities in England have their own funder, the Football Foundation. All three were open when checked on 15 August 2026.

How much is the Sport England Movement Fund?

Grants or crowdfunding pledges from £300 to £15,000, for projects running up to 12 months. There is no submission deadline. Sport England asks you to apply at least 12 weeks before you want to start activity or spend money, and says you will usually get a decision within six to eight weeks.

Is National Lottery Awards for All open?

Yes in all four nations as at 15 August 2026, each showing programme status open to applications, at £300 to £20,000. Decisions are quoted at 16 weeks in England and 12 weeks in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Will the Football Foundation pay for kit?

No. Kit and equipment are on its published list of things it does not fund, along with facilities that are not available for community use, projects outside England, retrospective funding, routine maintenance and facility hire. It funds pitches, drainage, floodlights, fencing, changing pavilions and similar facility work.

What can a club do if it needs less than £300?

Both national funds have a £300 minimum, so look local: parish, town and district council community grants, your county sports partnership or county association, and local business community funds. Or combine the ask into a larger project that clears the £300 floor.

Is there emergency funding to keep a club going?

There is no national fund for a club's ordinary running costs or deficits. The closest route is Sport England's Movement Fund, which lists responding to emergencies that impact on people taking part in physical activity, and helping get activity happening again, among the things it supports. Talk to your governing body and county sports partnership too.

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