Grants

We want to increase the strength of people fighting for more and better social housing.

Over the next three years we will be granting £200,000 to individuals, grassroots groups and organisations who are aligned with one or more of the core aims of our programme:

  • Increasing social housing nationally or locally
  • Improving the quality and sustainability of new and existing social housing
  • Empowering, and enforcing the rights of, social or private tenants

The fund is being distributed between 2023 and 2025.

The New Economics Foundation administers the grants. Decisions over who and what to fund, are made by a panel of housing organisers which were brought together as a sub-group of the Homes for Us Alliance.

The panel has designed the programme as a direct response to the depth of the housing crisis and state neglect across the UK. The fund is led by care, trust and generosity, as well an attempt to avoid problematic grant-making practices common in movement funding.

For the first year, we developed a non-competitive process where the panel proactively approached groups they wanted to fund. This means people didn’t have to waste time on extensive admin or wait for a long time for a decision. We want to meet the movement where it’s at — not add an extra burden.

We will learn from the first round of grantees and make adjustments to the funding process in 2024 and 2025. If you are interested in talking to us about the grants, sign up to our mailing list to get news about when the next rounds of funding open. This is likely to be in spring or summer. 

Prospective grantees should note that we cannot discuss future applications or grants until these rounds open, and take note of our criteria below.

We will fund:

Charitable organisations: CICs, CIOS, and unincorporated groups, or branches of tenant unions (annual income under £100,000).

Individuals over the age of 16.

We will not fund:

  • Private businesses, schools and universities, trusts.
  • Work located outside of the UK.
  • Those under 16 years old.
  • Large NGOs, unions or charities (income over £100,000), or a funded branch of one.

We will actively reach out to and prioritise grantees/​organisations that:

  • Are led by and for marginalised groups, traditionally excluded from funding. We will prioritise racialised communities, people of global majority, working class people, migrants, those of marginalised genders, disabled people, LGBTQI+ people, survivors- and those living at the intersection of multiple marginalised identities.
  • Are located in areas that receive little social justice work funding.
  • Have not received HFU funding before.