Merchant Navy Welfare Board
At a glance
This funder does not accept unsolicited applications. Don't spend time on an approach; the similar funders below support the same kind of work.
Key takeaways
- Grants go only to the Board's constituent member charities, and it does not accept unsolicited requests, so check first whether your organisation is a constituent member before doing anything else.
- Its themes are port welfare facilities, port health, seafarer welfare, research and pilot projects, and it does not fund core or general running costs, individuals, reclaimable VAT or costs incurred before a grant is awarded.
- Port-based projects need the support of the appropriate Port Welfare Committee before you submit, so start that conversation early, and Small Grants are up to £10,000 each, within a total annual limit of £100,000 against annual giving of £142,940, so keep any request within that ceiling and expect the money to be limited.
- Projects running beyond a year must show how they will secure follow-on funding; collaborative or multi-funded projects are weighted more heavily; and decisions take about 4 weeks after submission.
- Organisations that are not constituent members, or that want core costs, individual support or retrospective funding, should not apply.
Overview
Merchant Navy Welfare Board is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 212799).
The Merchant Navy Welfare Board is a registered charity formed by the UK government out of the 'Seamen's Welfare Board' following the end of the Second World War. It exists to improve the lives of seafarers and fishers by raising welfare standards in collaboration with its stakeholders. It has 47 maritime charity member organisations, and its annual giving was £142,940. Its Small Grants Programme allocates individual grants of up to £10,000 through the year, up to a total annual limit of £100,000.
What they fund
Priority Areas
The Board awards grants to its constituent member charities for projects that provide quality welfare services to serving and retired UK seafarers, fishers and their dependants, including those visiting UK ports, Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands. It funds repairs and refurbishment of port-based welfare facilities, equipment for those facilities, delivery costs for projects and services, port health and mental-health services, welfare projects for seafarers and dependants at sea or at home, feasibility studies, and short-term pilot projects and start-ups. Collaborative projects receive greater weighting. Projects lasting beyond a year need robust plans for follow-on funding, and the Board prefers projects funded from multiple sources. Port-based projects need support from the appropriate Port Welfare Committee before submission. The Board does not award grants to individuals.
Themes
- Port welfare facilities
- Port health services
- Seafarer welfare
- Research projects
- Pilot projects
Geographic Focus
UK; Gibraltar; the Falkland Islands.
What they don't fund
- Core funding and general revenue costs
- Any VAT element that can be reclaimed by a VAT registered organisation
- Individuals
- Grants retrospectively
How to apply
Organisations submit applications through the online application platform with the organisation’s latest annual report, appropriate accounts and supporting documentation.
Who can apply:
- MNWB provides grants to its Constituent members
- Port-based projects also require the support of the appropriate Port Welfare Committee before submitting an application.
What to send:
- Your organisation’s latest annual report
- Appropriate accounts
- Supporting documentation
- Your current Safeguarding, GDPR and EDI policies
- For port-based projects, a copy of your lone working policy
- The support of the appropriate Port Welfare Committee
Application success factors
What the charity says:
- Collaborative projects receive a higher weighting than non-collaborative projects.
- Projects lasting beyond a year need robust plans for future funding and must show how they will secure follow-on funding.
- The Board prefers projects funded from multiple sources.
- Port-based projects need support from the appropriate Port Welfare Committee before applicants submit their application.
- Applicants with significant reserves should explain why the project or service costs are not being met from existing funds.
- Where appropriate, grantees report on project activities, users, beneficiaries and related project information.
Where they fund
Where it says it funds
- United Kingdom
- Gibraltar
Similar funders
Funders supporting work similar to Merchant Navy Welfare Board.
Five years of accounts
| Financial year | Income | Expenditure | Grants paid | Accounts document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| year to 31 December 2021 | £416,724 | £1,145,600 | — | Accounts for year to 31 December 2021 |
| year to 31 December 2022 | £4,115,906 | £3,645,117 | £189,282 | Accounts for year to 31 December 2022 |
| year to 31 December 2023 | £530,794 | £2,194,758 | £81,457 | Accounts for year to 31 December 2023 |
| year to 31 December 2024 | £3,980,539 | £1,173,294 | £93,815 | Accounts for year to 31 December 2024 |
| year to 31 December 2025 | £808,097 | £1,264,956 | £142,940 | Accounts for year to 31 December 2025 |
Income vs grants paid
IncomeGrants paid
Total value each financial year
Grants paid stayed within income across the 4 years shown.
- Grants paid, year to 31 December 2022; year to 31 December 2023; year to 31 December 2024: grants to institutions, as reported on the charity register (Part B).
- Grants paid, year to 31 December 2025: the accounts do not say whether this is grants awarded or paid.
Figures from the charity’s filed accounts and its register entry. The document icon links to the charity’s entry on the Charity Commission register, where its filed accounts can be found.
Sources
Registers and filings
Other sources
- mnwb.org/grant-funding · read on 30 October 2026
- mnwb.org/about-us · read on 30 October 2026
- mnwb.org · read on 30 October 2026
- mnwb.org/contact-us · read on 30 October 2026
- Annual report (year to 31 December 2025)
This profile draws on the funder’s own website as well as its filed accounts.
Sources last checked on 30 October 2026.
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At a glance
Applying to Merchant Navy Welfare Board?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- 023 8033 7799source
- enquiries@mnwb.org.uksource
- 8 Cumberland Place Southampton Hampshire SO15 2BHsource
- mnwb.org
- Contact form
- Apply online
Applying to Merchant Navy Welfare Board?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- 023 8033 7799source
- enquiries@mnwb.org.uksource
- 8 Cumberland Place Southampton Hampshire SO15 2BHsource
- mnwb.org
- Contact form
- Apply online