RFU Injured Players Foundation

Registered charity 1122139 · since 2007rfuipf.org.uk·England·Updated 30 October 2026

At a glance

£1.2M

Annual giving, year to 30 June 2025

From filed accounts

Up to £20,000

Grant range

From the funder's website

7 weeks

Typical decision time

Open to applications

Rolling, no deadlines · unsolicited applications welcome

Key takeaways

The Foundation supports rugby union players in England who have a catastrophic spinal cord or traumatic brain injury, and it also funds research and offers some help to players with other serious rugby injuries, so a request should fit one of these areas.
Players who were not playing rugby union in England, or whose catastrophic injury has not resulted in permanent disability, are not covered, and Non-CI grants are available only through a school or rugby club approved by the RFU, for injuries sustained in a match or training session.
Its usual maximum grant is £20,000, with exceptions considered, and the charity says decisions take 6-8 weeks, with applications accepted on a rolling basis.
Researchers seeking partnership funding should contact the IPF about their proposals, and the charity favours research that helps prevent or manage spinal cord or traumatic brain injury in rugby and that directly improves clients' independence.
For Non-CI grants, the charity asks for a quote on business headed paper and an invoice containing company details.

Overview

RFU Injured Players Foundation is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 1122139).

The RFU Injured Players Foundation provides lifelong support to those who sustain a catastrophic injury through rugby union, so they can live as fully and independently as they are able. Its work covers immediate and long-term client support and a research programme, supported by an RFU fundraising and awareness function. It describes itself as donating approximately £1,000,000 a year to improving injured players' independence, and the annual report records £1,179,784 paid.

What they fund

Priority Areas

The RFU Injured Players Foundation gives immediate and lifelong support to rugby players who sustain catastrophic spinal cord or traumatic brain injuries while playing rugby union in England, to help them live as fully and independently as they can. Support can include rehabilitation, home adaptations, transport, education and training, wheelchairs and equipment, and other essential needs, with each application considered individually. The Foundation also provides information and support to players’ families, clubs and team-mates, and offers information and, where possible, relief from financial hardship to players with other serious rugby injuries. It funds research into the causes and outcomes of catastrophic injury and ways to prevent or respond to these injuries, working with academic partners and welcoming researchers seeking partnership funding or collaborative support. Research priorities include injury prevention or management and improving clients’ independence.

Themes

Catastrophic injury support
Rugby injury research
Non-catastrophic injury support

Geographic Focus

England.

What they don't fund

Players who were not playing rugby union in England
Players whose catastrophic spinal cord injury or traumatic brain injury has not resulted in permanent disability
Non-Catastrophic Injury (Non-CI) Grant Programme only: injuries classed as a catastrophic spinal cord injury or an acute severe traumatic brain injury; injuries not sustained during a rugby match or rugby training session with a school or club approved by the RFU

How to apply

Researchers seeking partnership funding or collaborative support can contact the IPF about research proposals.

Who can apply:

Non-CI Grant Programme: Grants should be applied for through the individual's school or rugby club. The injury must have been sustained during a rugby match or rugby training session with a school or club approved by the RFU.

What to send:

A quote on business headed paper
A quote with company signature included
A screenshot or web link to show cost of item required or receipt
An invoice containing company details

Application success factors

What the charity says:

Each application is considered individually, focusing on the best long-term interests of the person.
The IPF prioritises research that helps prevent or manage spinal cord or traumatic brain injury within rugby.
The IPF favours research with a direct positive impact on clients’ independence.
It welcomes research that provides proof of concept or evaluates the effectiveness of current IPF interventions.

Where they fund

Where it says it funds

England

Similar funders

Funders supporting work similar to RFU Injured Players Foundation.

The Hargreaves FoundationRollingGave £1.7M Wasps Legends Charitable FoundationMixed deadlinesGave £109k The Team Forces FoundationRollingGave £740k Sydney Driscoll Neuroscience FoundationInvitation only Football FoundationRollingGave £106M The Tim Henman FoundationRollingGave £64,369 The Players FoundationInvitation onlyGave £133k The Watches of Switzerland Group FoundationRollingGave £1.4M The Harry and Janice Banks FoundationNo public processGave £281k The Lake House Charitable FoundationInvitation onlyGave £21,699

Five years of accounts

Financial year	Income	Expenditure	Grants paid	Accounts document
year to 30 June 2021	£518,716	£781,056	—	Accounts for year to 30 June 2021
year to 30 June 2022	£1,987,659	£913,653	—	Accounts for year to 30 June 2022
year to 30 June 2023	£1,811,040	£1,944,737	£192,375	Accounts for year to 30 June 2023
year to 30 June 2024	£1,184,880	£1,907,003	£140,041	Accounts for year to 30 June 2024
year to 30 June 2025	£2,068,571	£2,493,463	£1,179,784	Accounts for year to 30 June 2025

Income vs grants paid

IncomeGrants paid

Total value each financial year

YE 2023

£192k grants

YE 2024

£140k grants

YE 2025

£1.2M paid

Grants paid stayed within income across the 3 years shown.

Grants paid, year to 30 June 2023; year to 30 June 2024: grants to institutions, as reported on the charity register (Part B).
Grants paid, year to 30 June 2025: grants paid out in the year.

— No grants figure for those years.

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.