Summer 2026 Updates
First, thank you to all applicants and prospective applicants for your patience with us as we update our systems, in an attempt to improve our application process for everyone. Here are some important updates.
Round 2 Now OPEN!
Today we have opened to applications for Round 2 of 2026.
Thank you to all applicants in Round 1 for your patience with us following an unprecedented number of applications in such a short space of time. We are still communicating application outcomes, but remain on track to have these completed by the end of August.
Eligibility Checker (BETA)
We have made some significant changes to our Eligibility Checker, with each category route now asking questions that are most relevant to each category.
It had become clear that many applicants were relying on the Eligibility Checker alone before applying, without checking information more widely across our website. Therefore, more questions are now asked in the Checker, in the hope of saving potential applicants wasted effort in applying.
Please note that this is a ‘Beta’ version of the Eligibility Checker, meaning that — while we have tested it — it may still contain errors. If you come across something that isn’t working properly please do let us know.
Early Closure
In our last application round, we were forced to close a few days early because we simply could not keep pace with the volume of applications and enquiries. Following this, we wish to alert applicants that we will close some categories early if we either (a) receive too many applications for our small team to manage or (b) receive requests for more than three times the value of our budget per category. Therefore, we encourage applicants to apply early, and not wait until right up to the deadline. Based upon previous trends, we expect this to affect only our ‘poverty’ and ‘human rights’ categories, as these categories have been consistently generating the highest numbers of applications.
Application Feedback
For the past decade we have tried to be a funder that gives feedback proactively to unsuccessful applicants. However, this can take a substantial amount of our time, and therefore it regrettably becomes a lower priority than processing applications, reports and enquiries. Therefore, in the current circumstances, it has not always been possible to provide feedback proactively.
If your organisation would like to receive feedback on an application it has submitted to us in the past year (and it has not yet received any) please get in touch with us and we will do our best to respond.
We wish all of our ‘Round 2’ applicants all the best with their applications and search for funding.