East End Community Foundation

Charity Number: 1147789

Annual Expenditure: £1.0M

Stay updated on changes from East End Community Foundation and other funders

Get daily notifications about new funding opportunities, deadline changes, and programme updates from UK funders.

Free Email Updates

Quick Stats

  • Annual Giving: Over £30m distributed over 30 years (approx. £1m+ annually recent years)
  • Success Rate: Increased by 17% through improved model of working
  • Decision Time: 2-3 months from application deadline
  • Grant Range: £500 - £20,000 (varies by programme)
  • Geographic Focus: Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets, and City of London

Contact Details

Website: www.eastendcf.org

Email: admin@eastendcf.org / grants@eastendcf.org

Phone: 020 7345 4444

Pre-application Support: EECF runs free funding workshops and has a friendly and knowledgeable team who can provide advice and guidance on grant programmes and signposting to other funding opportunities.

Overview

Founded over 30 years ago, the East End Community Foundation (EECF) is a grant-maker and philanthropy advisor dedicated to improving lives in Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets and the City of London. The foundation has distributed over £30 million to date, delivering grant-making programmes that aim to raise educational achievement, enhance employability and increase social cohesion to improve the quality of life and opportunities for people living in London's East End. EECF won the Charity Awards 2024 for Grantmaking & Funding for their innovative Tackling Pensioner Poverty project, which demonstrated the foundation's collaborative approach to addressing inequality. As charity number 1147789, EECF regularly reviews its funding priorities through research, official statistics, and consultation with local people and stakeholders including the voluntary and community sector.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

Life Chances Programme (Mixed deadlines, collaborative giving)

  • Focus areas: Youth unemployment and wellbeing, pensioner poverty and isolation, and digital inequality
  • Young People Wellbeing Grants: Supporting mental and emotional health and life skills development
  • Recent increase in grant budget to £100,000 for expanded programme
  • Phase II aims to raise £4 million by 2028

Tackling Pensioner Poverty (Fixed deadlines)

  • Grants up to £20,000 for local groups providing benefits advice and support
  • Three organisations funded in recent round
  • Programme extended to Newham following success
  • Since January 2023, over 150 pensioners supported to claim over £400,000 in benefits

SWEF Enterprise Fund (Rolling basis)

  • Start-up grants: Up to £500 for very early-stage/pre-revenue businesses
  • Business grants: Up to £2,000 for businesses trading less than two years
  • For young people aged 18-30 who cannot afford to invest in their own businesses
  • Successful start-up grant recipients can reapply after six months for additional funds up to £1,500

Connecting Communities (Partnership programme)

  • Provides devices, training, and free broadband for low-income families
  • Reached 500th Device Distribution Day milestone
  • Partnership with Poplar HARCA, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, and Letta Trust

Priority Areas

  • Educational achievement enhancement
  • Employability and youth unemployment
  • Social cohesion and community building
  • Pensioner poverty and isolation
  • Digital inclusion and reducing digital inequality
  • Mental health and wellbeing for young people
  • Life skills development
  • Supporting grassroots charitable organisations

What They Don't Fund

EECF does not accept unsolicited applications or requests for funding. Specific eligibility criteria vary by programme and donor. Organizations must have:

  • A governing document
  • A bank account with two signatories
  • Appropriate safeguarding policies when working with vulnerable groups

Geographic restriction: Only organisations working in or residents of Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets, or the City of London are eligible.

Helpful Hinchilla

Ready to write a winning application for East End Community Foundation?

Our AI helps you craft proposals that match their exact priorities. Save 10+ hours and increase your success rate.

Get Free Beta Access

Governance and Leadership

Chief Executive Officer: Tracey Walsh leads the dynamic and diverse team. Walsh emphasizes that “good grant-giving can be about far more than just distributing cash – it can create a community of support to address a social problem.” She states, "Our vision is to improve the life chances of East End residents and our 30 years of expertise means we can harness donors' generosity to have the maximum impact."

Board of Trustees:

  • Bronek Masojada - Chair of Trustees (joined November 2021)
  • Rick - Trustee and Chair of Finance & Administration Committee
  • Guy Nicholson - Trustee and Chair of Development & Communications Committee
  • Jim - Partner in Banking and Finance practice at Clifford Chance
  • John - Partner at an international law firm
  • Wendy Miller - Trustee
  • Adrian - Trustee with legal training and charity governance experience
  • Sister Christine - Long-standing Trustee
  • Tim Musgrave - Trustee
  • Catherine McGuinness, Katherine Webster, Anne Clarke - Trustees

Key Staff:

  • Allan Anderson - Head of Grants & Community Engagement
  • Sally Bateson - Life Chances Campaign Director
  • Neri Gokyay - Senior Development Officer
  • Shoheb Ahmead - Communications & Events Officer

Walsh emphasizes accountability: "As grant makers, we need to be accountable and respond effectively to the needs of a wide range of stakeholders – from local businesses and government to local people and the voluntary sector. It's all about making the biggest impact for the community, for the funder and the beneficiary – because we all want to win in this process."

Application Process and Timeline

How to Apply

EECF runs an open and transparent grants process across all funding opportunities. Applications are submitted online through their website by specified deadlines:

  1. Review general grant criteria and specific programme guidelines
  2. Attend free funding workshops (highly recommended)
  3. Contact grants team for pre-application guidance if needed
  4. Submit application and supporting documents online by deadline
  5. Wait for EECF Grants Team assessment and possible follow-up questions

Important: EECF does not accept unsolicited applications. Only apply to specific open funding rounds advertised on their website or in their quarterly newsletter.

Decision Timeline

  1. Grants Team completes assessment of all eligible applications
  2. Team may contact applicants for additional information
  3. Due diligence checks on governance, financial position, and policies
  4. Assessments presented to relevant decision-making panel
  5. Panel prioritises applications within available budget
  6. Grants Team notifies applicants of outcome

Success Rates

EECF implemented a new model of working that increased applicants' success rate by 17%. This improvement came from their approach of directing applicants to third-party funding streams more appropriate to their needs, demonstrating their commitment to supporting organisations even when they cannot fund them directly.

Reapplication Policy

Specific reapplication policies are not publicly documented on the website. For the SWEF Enterprise Fund, successful start-up grant recipients can reapply after six months if their business has progressed. For other programmes, contact grants@eastendcf.org for guidance on reapplication.

Application Success Factors

Direct Advice from EECF

  • Attend free workshops: EECF runs regular funding workshops specifically to share tips and advice on writing grant applications
  • Seek pre-application guidance: Their team can provide advice before you apply and signpost to other funding opportunities
  • Read specific guidelines: Each fund may have different criteria depending on the programme and donor
  • Join mailing list: Subscribe to quarterly newsletters for current funding opportunities

Recently Funded Projects

  • Neighbours in Poplar: Combating pensioner poverty with funding and resources empowering senior residents to access welfare benefits
  • Three local groups (Tackling Pensioner Poverty): Each received up to £20,000 plus specialist advice training, enabling 150+ pensioners to claim over £400,000 in benefits
  • Digital inclusion projects: 500+ device distributions with training and free broadband through Connecting Communities

Language and Approach

EECF emphasizes:

  • Collaboration: They value partnerships across private and public sectors and grassroots organisations
  • Impact focus: Demonstrate clear outcomes and how you'll improve life chances
  • Community voice: Show how local people and stakeholders have informed your work
  • Accountability and effectiveness: Be transparent about governance, finances, and impact measurement
  • Innovation: They're interested in innovative ways of addressing social issues

Standing Out

According to CEO Tracey Walsh, EECF believes in doing “more than simply give money away.” They look for organisations that:

  • Work collaboratively to tackle specific social issues
  • Have strong community connections and understand local needs
  • Can demonstrate effective use of resources
  • Are willing to engage with the broader community of support EECF creates
  • Have robust governance and safeguarding in place

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • Geographic specificity is crucial: Only organisations working in Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets, or City of London are eligible – ensure your work clearly serves these boroughs
  • Engage before applying: Take advantage of free workshops and pre-application guidance from their knowledgeable team to strengthen your application
  • Think collaboration: EECF values partnerships and collaborative approaches – demonstrate how you work with others to address social issues
  • Focus on life chances: Frame your work around improving educational achievement, employability, or social cohesion for East End residents
  • Be prepared for the timeline: Allow 2-3 months from deadline to decision, and plan your project timeline accordingly
  • Don't waste time on closed rounds: Never submit unsolicited applications – only apply to advertised open funding rounds
  • Consider alternative options: If unsuccessful, EECF's 17% success rate improvement came from redirecting applicants to more appropriate funders – ask for signposting advice

Similar Funders

These funders frequently fund the same charities:

🎯 You've done the research. Now write an application they can't refuse.

Hinchilla combines funder's specific priorities with your organisation's past successful grants and AI analysis of what reviewers want to see.

✓

Data privacy and security by default

✓

Your organisation's past successful grants and experience

✓

AI analysis of what reviewers want to see

✓

A compelling draft application in 10 minutes instead of 10 hours

Get Beta Access NowLearn More

References