FAQs

Every application is considered on its own merits as the organisations we support vary hugely in size and scope. The Charity makes grants from a few hundred pounds to hundreds of thousands of pounds, but there is of course only a finite amount of money available. If you are considering applying for £50,000 and above, and you have not received a grant from us in the past, please note that it is advisable to contact the Charity first by email, introducing your organisation and summarising the project and fundraising plans. We will then contact you and explore this further. Those who have received a grant previously should proceed with their application.

the Army Benevolent Fund is able to support organisations that are there to benefit individuals who are serving, or who have served in the British Army and/or their immediate dependents. You do not need to be a registered charity in order to apply for a grant.

In applying for a grant, we would normally expect a military charity to be a member of Cobseo, the overarching body responsible for representing the military charitable sector to HM Government and more broadly across the UK.   Additionally, we would need to be aware of any other membership of specific regional organisation/s regulatory or inspection bodies for example: Veterans Scotland, The Fundraising Regulator and The Quality Care Commission.

Whilst the Grants Committee would always prefer for you to specify an amount, it is not necessary. Our experienced Committee will make a judgement on how much to award – please ensure that you have included a project/organisational budget and what funding is already secured so our Trustees can see what your shortfall is. Larger sums are normally only allocated to those organisations that have established a working relationship with our Charity and have clearly demonstrated how they recognise the grant received.

We will consider requests for specific activities or programmes, and Capital projects (i.e. the construction of a new building). In the case of a capital project it is recommended you make contact with us before submitting an application, key information requirement will include, overall cost, timelines, planning, future operating cost sustainability and recognition of any grant. Requests for funding of research are NOT routinely accepted, again it would be appropriate to approach the charity first before completing the application form.

Yes, these are available on our website here.

These are all included in the Terms and Conditions but the Committee will pay close attention to ensuring that the organisation complies with all laws and this will include but without limitation compliance with all charity law, the protection of children, young people and adults at risk legislation, data protection, employment legislation, equality legislation, planning, health and safety requirements and procurement legislation and you will obtain all relevant legal or regulatory approvals, copyright and other consents and licences necessary for the Activity to be delivered. In particular, but without limitation, they will expect organisations to ensure that all staff or volunteers involved in the delivery of medical and /or specialist activities or therapies are professionally trained and fully and appropriately qualified and insured.

Our Charity aims to be responsive to the area of greatest need rather than want – therefore the decision on what to apply for will depend on the priorities of your organisation – i.e. what would make the most difference?

The Committee/Trustees recognise that securing funding for core costs can be a particular challenge, and therefore will accept applications towards the core operational costs of an organisation. They recognise this will often include some employment costs. We will, by exception, also consider requests for specific positions and salaries, however, it should be noted this would normally be for one year only and we cannot guarantee funds in subsequent years. The Committee/Trustees may take the decision to restrict any grant made during the application consideration.

Our Charity does, on occasion, ‘match funds’ with partner organisations, but any decision will be independently made by our Grants Committee/Trustees. If you already have funds promised then please include these in your budget and fundraising plan and they will be taken into consideration along with the details of the work that you are applying for.

There are dates on the Grants to Charities page which outline when our Charity will accept the submission of applications for each Grants Committee. By exception, we may consider an application outside of these windows but, before submitting an application, it is imperative that you call the Charity to discuss this.

After emailing your application, you will receive an email acknowledgement letting you know that we have received your application. You should then allow up to 14 weeks for a final outcome – this is due to the volume of applications we receive and because we take great care in reviewing each one individually.

In exceptional circumstances it is possible for our Grants Committee/Trustees to review an application more quickly, however, it is important that there is a clear reason why this might be the case – we aim to be fair and therefore avoid organisations ‘queue-jumping.’