Fusion21 Foundation

Charity Number: 1164818

Annual Expenditure: £1.5M

Stay updated on changes from Fusion21 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 Income: £12.5 million (latest accounts)
  • Charitable Activities Expenditure: £1.5 million
  • Total Grants Given Since 2015: £3+ million
  • Social Investment Committed: £2 million
  • Grant Range: £25,000 - £105,000+
  • Geographic Focus: UK-wide (primarily working with Fusion21 members)
  • Application Method: Invitation only

Contact Details

Website: www.fusion21.co.uk/foundation

Email: info@fusion21.co.uk

Phone: 0151 481 3000

Address: Unit 2 Puma Court, Kings Business Park, Knowsley, L34 1PJ

Head of Foundation: Jo Hannan

Overview

Established in 2015, FUSION21 FOUNDATION (Charity Number 1164818) is a grant-making foundation with an annual income of £12.5 million and charitable expenditure of £1.5 million. The Foundation's primary objective is to tackle social and economic exclusion, supporting geographical economics and local residents within these areas to obtain social wellbeing and enhance quality of life. Since inception, the Foundation has awarded over £3 million in grants and committed £2 million in social investment.

The Foundation operates as a natural extension of Fusion21's procurement partnerships, a social enterprise providing frameworks to over 1,070 public sector organizations across the UK, particularly in social housing, local authorities, and health sectors. The Foundation takes a proactive, partnership-based approach to grant-making, collaborating directly with Fusion21 members to understand community needs and co-fund innovative projects. Notable investments include £1 million in a Cost of Living Hardship Fund benefiting 70 member organizations and £2 million as founding investor in the Recovery Loan Fund.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

The Foundation offers two types of investment:

1. Grant Funding: £25,000 - £105,000+

  • Minimum project value: £25,000 (the Foundation does not actively seek projects under this threshold)
  • Focus on large-scale, high-impact programmes
  • Match funding availability is a key consideration
  • Invitation-only application process

2. Social Investment: £50,000 - £1.5 million

  • Repayable finance through the Recovery Loan Fund partnership
  • Fixed interest rate of 7.9% per year
  • Available to eligible VCSE organizations
  • Arrangement fee of 2.5-3% depending on loan size

Priority Areas

The Foundation's three core funding priorities are:

Health & Wellbeing

  • Age-friendly social housing programmes
  • Mental health support for vulnerable populations
  • Addressing appliance poverty and fuel poverty
  • Health and social housing data integration projects
  • Maternity support programmes

Employment & Skills

  • Employability initiatives for young people
  • Skills development programmes
  • Career pathways in health and social care
  • Finance and budgeting training

Financial Inclusion & Resilience

  • Cost of living support initiatives
  • Domestic abuse recovery programmes
  • Furniture provision in social housing
  • Community asset development
  • Financial hardship funds

Types of Projects Funded

Research & Policy Advocacy

  • Studies to better understand community challenges
  • Evidence-based reports to influence policy
  • Community mapping and asset-based community development
  • National impact frameworks for infrastructure organizations

Innovative Delivery Projects

  • “Test and learn” approaches
  • New solutions to ongoing social issues
  • Pilot programmes with potential for scale
  • Collaborative initiatives with multiple partners

What They Don't Fund

Based on their stated priorities:

  • Projects under £25,000 in total value
  • Applications from organizations not connected to Fusion21 members
  • Unsolicited applications (invitation-only process)
  • Projects outside their three priority areas
Helpful Hinchilla

Ready to write a winning application for Fusion21 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

The Foundation is governed by a Board of 6 Trustees who receive no remuneration or payments. The organization employs 72 staff members across the wider Fusion21 group.

Key Leadership:

Jo Hannan, Head of The Fusion21 Foundation

Jo brings 27 years of experience across local government, social housing, and the VCSE sector, with a strong track record in impactful community investment and grant management. Based in Merseyside, she leads the Foundation's strategic approach to partnership working and evidence-based funding.

On their approach: “We see partnership working as the best way to maximise impact with the grant funding we have available.”

On research funding: "As a foundation we fund research and initiatives aimed at finding practical solutions that make positive differences to peoples' lives."

On strategic alignment: Jo emphasized their commitment to projects that align “perfectly with our commitment to making positive changes through learning, research, and evidence.”

On priorities: "The Foundation's main objectives are to make a visible impact in the areas of financial inclusion and resilience, as well as health and wellbeing."

Application Process and Timeline

How to Apply

This Foundation does not have a public application process. The Fusion21 Foundation takes a proactive approach to grant-making and only invited applications will be considered.

The Foundation collaborates directly with Fusion21 members (public sector organizations using their procurement services) to understand community needs and identify opportunities for co-funding projects. If you are a Fusion21 member seeking match funding for innovation or research projects aligned with their priority areas, you can contact the Foundation directly to discuss potential collaboration.

Eligibility: Organizations must either be Fusion21 members or work in partnership with a member organization. Fusion21 members include:

  • Housing Associations
  • Local Councils
  • ALMOs (Arms Length Management Organisations)
  • Housing Co-operatives and Trusts
  • Social housing repair divisions (DLOs)
  • Health organizations
  • Education institutions
  • Blue-light services

Getting on Their Radar

Become a Fusion21 Member: Public sector organizations across the UK are eligible to join Fusion21 as members. Membership provides access to procurement frameworks and creates opportunities for Foundation funding discussions.

Partnership Approaches: The Foundation has demonstrated willingness to fund national organizations working with their member base. Examples include NAVCA (National Association for Voluntary and Community Action) and Social Investment Business. Organizations delivering programmes that benefit Fusion21 members' communities may be considered through partnership arrangements.

Member Collaboration: If your organization works with social housing providers, local authorities, or other public sector bodies, explore whether they are Fusion21 members. Collaborative projects with member organizations can be brought to the Foundation's attention by the member.

Contact the Foundation: For organizations with projects strongly aligned with the Foundation's priorities and working within communities served by Fusion21 members, reaching out to discuss potential fit is welcomed. Contact Jo Hannan at the Foundation to explore possibilities.

Decision Timeline

Specific timelines are not publicly documented. The Foundation operates on a relationship-driven model where projects emerge through ongoing dialogue with members rather than fixed application deadlines or decision cycles.

Success Rates

Success rates are not publicly available. Given the invitation-only model and collaborative approach with members, the Foundation appears to work closely with potential grantees to develop proposals before formal invitation to apply.

Reapplication Policy

No public information available regarding reapplication policies for unsuccessful applicants.

Application Success Factors

Foundation-Specific Insights

Partnership and Co-Funding are Essential

The Foundation explicitly states that partnership working is their preferred approach to maximize impact. Projects with match funding from other sources are viewed favorably. Jo Hannan emphasized: “We see partnership working as the best way to maximise impact with the grant funding we have available.”

Scale and Impact Matter

The Foundation is “keen to support large scale, high-impact programmes” and would not actively seek projects under £25,000. This indicates a preference for substantial initiatives that can demonstrate significant community benefit. The level of impact is a key consideration in funding decisions.

Innovation and Evidence

The Foundation funds two distinct types of work: research to understand issues and create policy advocacy opportunities, and innovative delivery projects with a “test and learn” approach. Projects should either generate new evidence or pilot new solutions. Recent funded research includes work on appliance poverty, rural housing crisis, and furniture provision in social housing.

Alignment with Member Communities

Since the Foundation works through its member network, projects that address needs identified by Fusion21 members in their communities are most likely to succeed. The Foundation collaborates with members to understand community needs, so proposals emerging from these conversations have stronger prospects.

Recent Funding Examples as Models

Successful projects include:

  • Little Village (£105,000): Maternity packs for London hospitals - addresses health & wellbeing at scale
  • NAVCA (£50,000): National impact framework development - research with policy advocacy potential
  • ForHousing: Community asset mapping using Asset Based Community Development - innovative approach to understanding communities
  • Prima Group: Health and social housing data integration pilot - test and learn project with innovation
  • New Horizon Youth Centre (£150,000): Mental health support for homeless young people - high impact in priority area
  • Longleigh Foundation (£30,000): Rural housing research - evidence generation for policy

Language and Approach

The Foundation uses terminology around “practical solutions,” “visible impact,” “learning and evidence,” and "making positive differences to peoples' lives." Proposals should demonstrate how they will create measurable improvements in communities served by Fusion21 members.

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • No unsolicited applications accepted - you must be or work with a Fusion21 member to access this funding. Consider membership if you're an eligible public sector organization, or partnership with existing members.
  • Think big and collaborative - the Foundation seeks projects of £25,000+ with match funding and partnership approaches. Small, standalone projects are not their focus.
  • Innovation or research focus - your project should either generate evidence through research or pilot innovative “test and learn” delivery models. Standard service delivery is less likely to be funded.
  • Member relationships are key - the Foundation's proactive model means funding opportunities emerge through ongoing dialogue with members. Building relationships with Fusion21 members in your sector is essential.
  • Demonstrate scale and impact - emphasize how your project will create visible, measurable improvements in communities. The Foundation prioritizes high-impact programmes with potential for wider learning or replication.
  • Align tightly with priority areas - projects must clearly fit within health & wellbeing, employment & skills, or financial inclusion & resilience. Cross-cutting projects addressing multiple priorities may be particularly attractive.
  • Social investment option available - for larger-scale projects (£50,000-£1.5m), consider the Recovery Loan Fund as repayable finance, particularly if your organization is VCSE sector and affected by recent economic challenges.

🎯 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