Reading Borough Council has allocated £150k for small grants to the voluntary and community sector for the year 2026–27.

Who is eligible to apply?

To be eligible, applicants must:

• be a registered charity or a not for profit organisation
• have a gross annual income below £100k
• not have already received £20k from an RBC grant during 2025/2026
• be applying to deliver a project inside the Reading borough
• not apply to deliver a project that is identical to or a continuation of those for which they received funding in the previous round.

What are the funder’s priorities?

The council is inviting applications for funding to support its aims to:

• Tackle Inequality: by prioritising those at greatest risk of exposure to deprivation and improving health and economic benefits for everyone in Reading.  Enabling our residents to become more self-sufficient, providing support for those on low incomes who encounter a financial shock, increase people’s financial resilience to enable communities to better deal with crises in the long-term, and reducing dependence and repeat need for financial support.
• Be actively anti-racist:  by tackling discrimination, reforming systems, promoting inclusion, supporting education, challenging bias, ensuring accountability, and celebrating diverse communities to build equality, understanding, and belonging.

How to apply

• Download a copy of the application form
• Download a copy of the scoring matrix
• Submit completed applications with any supporting documentation via email to vcs@reading.gov.uk

How much can you apply for?

Grants of up to £7,500 are available for smaller local VCS organisations who are not already financially supported by the council or who have received less than £20,000 in support during 2026/27

A proportion of the small grants funding will be used to support bids under £2,500.  This is to provide direct support to smaller scale local activities within our communities. Bidders should provide evidence on how activities are not already provided within local area.

If you are applying for a small amount of funding of £250 to £500, you should apply for a micro grant.

Is there a deadline?

Yes, 13 November 2026 and they will notify bidders if they were successful before Christmas.

Further information and support:

• Link to funder’s website
• If you have any queries, please contact Bikal Shrestha, Funding Officer-Community and Government Programmes email:  bikal.shrestha@reading.gov.uk / telephone: 0118 937 3324.
• If you would like further support from RVA with submitting a funding application or any support with governance required for your group to get ready for this funding, please email advice@rva.org.ukor telephone 0118 937 2273 for free and independent support and advice.