Oxfordshire Community & Voluntary Action

Registered charity 1108504 · since 2005ocva.org.uk·Oxfordshire·Updated 30 October 2026

At a glance

£1.1M

Annual giving, year to 31 March 2025

From filed accounts

Open to applications

Rolling, no deadlines · unsolicited applications welcome

Key takeaways

The Connected Communities Fund suits groups running regular, group-based activities in Oxfordshire that reduce isolation, keep people active or build new skills, especially for older adults and adults with additional needs.
The fund's stated maximum is £5,000, and grants have ranged from £500 to £5,000, so a modest request within that range is a realistic size.
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, and the form asks you to describe your activities in your own words and choose the themes, priorities and locations that fit your work, with priority going to smaller groups and projects that fill gaps in local provision or build resilient communities beyond the grant.
Do not apply for one-off events or occasional gatherings, projects for children or young people only, improvements to land or buildings you do not own, or activities that are not inclusive or promote a single faith or political view.
Community groups can apply to this fund or the Community Capacity Fund, but not to both.

Overview

Oxfordshire Community & Voluntary Action is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 1108504).

Oxfordshire Community & Voluntary Action aims to enable a diverse voluntary and community sector to flourish, by providing advice, information and training, acting as advocates and representatives, and building partnerships. Its Connected Communities Fund supports local initiatives that help people across Oxfordshire stay connected, active and well, and 73 projects received a share of £183,500, with grants ranging from £500 to £5,000. Its Well Together programme distributed £1.3 million to strengthen community-led health and wellbeing activity across 10 Priority Areas in Oxfordshire, and has supported 128 projects and activities provided by new and existing groups and organisations. According to the annual report, the charity awarded £1,084,033 in total.

What they fund

Priority Areas

OCVA’s Connected Communities Fund supports regular, group-based activities focused on staying active, reducing isolation and building new skills. It accepts applications from charities and other eligible organisations, including community groups with a group bank account, for activities based in Oxfordshire that benefit people living there. It is aimed at activities serving older adults and adults with additional needs. The activities it names include community socialising, health and wellbeing, arts and creative work, outdoor and environmental activity, and learning new skills. The fund gives priority to smaller groups and organisations, and looks for ongoing activities that bring continued benefit to the community.

Themes

Community socialising
Health and wellbeing
Arts and creativity
Outdoor and environment
Skills and learning

Geographic Focus

Oxfordshire.

What they don't fund

Connected Communities Fund only:
- One-off events, occasional gatherings or short-term activities that are not part of a regular, ongoing group activity
- Projects for children/young people only
- Private individuals, private companies, public regulatory bodies, national charities without a clearly defined Oxfordshire-focused project and ringfenced accounts and budget
- Improvements to land/buildings not owned by the applicant
- Activities must be inclusive and not promote a single faith or political view

How to apply

Applicants complete the application form, describing their activities in their own words and selecting the themes, priorities and locations that best reflect their work and communities; a team member reviews each application.

Who can apply:

Connected Communities Fund
- Which type of organisations can apply? Charity; Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO); Community interest company limited by guarantee (CIC); Registered company with charitable status; Co-operative community benefit societies; Social enterprise; Community groups with a bank account in the name of the organisation applying.
- Your group and activity should be based in Oxfordshire and benefit people living here.
- Community groups are only able to apply to either the Connected Communities Fund or Community Capacity Fund.

Application success factors

What the charity says:

Priority is given to smaller groups and organisations.
Projects that fill gaps in local activity provision are especially welcomed.
Projects that enhance what is already available locally are especially welcomed.
OCVA welcomes new approaches, such as tackling digital exclusion or using local spaces creatively.
Projects working with local businesses to create social, environmental or economic benefits are especially welcomed.
OCVA welcomes projects creating social activities that connect unpaid carers.
Projects that build resilient communities lasting beyond the grant are especially welcomed.

Where they fund

Where it says it funds

Oxfordshire

Similar funders

Funders supporting work similar to Oxfordshire Community & Voluntary Action.

Active OxfordshireFixed deadlines Community First OxfordshireRollingGave £12,742 Oxfordshire Community FoundationFixed deadlinesGave £2.5M The Stanton Ballard Charitable TrustFixed deadlinesGave £148k Oxfordshire Homeless MovementNo public process Sandwell Council of Voluntary Organisations – SCVOFixed deadlinesGave £800k Woodcote Charitable AssociationRollingGave £20,000 St Michael’s and All Saints’ CharitiesRollingGave £55,000 Janet and Bryan Moore Charitable TrustRollingGave £44,000 The White Horse Show Trust LimitedRollingGave £50,000

Five years of accounts

Financial year	Income	Expenditure	Grants paid	Accounts document
year to 31 March 2021	£240,991	£248,132	—	Accounts for year to 31 March 2021
year to 31 March 2022	£544,929	£547,021	—	Accounts for year to 31 March 2022
year to 31 March 2023	£632,564	£484,332	£118,390	Accounts for year to 31 March 2023
year to 31 March 2024	£989,670	£798,244	£290,586	Accounts for year to 31 March 2024
year to 31 March 2025	£1,658,335	£1,723,317	£1,084,033	Accounts for year to 31 March 2025

Income vs grants paid

IncomeGrants paid

Total value each financial year

YE 2023

£118k grants

YE 2024

£291k grants

YE 2025

£1.1M awarded

Grants paid stayed within income across the 3 years shown.

Grants paid, year to 31 March 2023; year to 31 March 2024: grants to institutions, as reported on the charity register (Part B).
Grants paid, year to 31 March 2025: grants awarded in the year, as reported in the accounts.

— No grants figure for that year.

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.