Sandwell Council of Voluntary Organisations – SCVO

Registered charity 1071514 · since 1998scvo.info·Sandwell·Updated 30 October 2026

At a glance

£800k
Annual giving, year to 31 March 2025
From filed accounts
Open to applications
Fixed application deadlines · unsolicited applications welcome

Key takeaways

  • If your work is in Sandwell and builds social connections, tackles loneliness and isolation, or promotes healthy lifestyles, it fits the funder's stated focus, which also covers food pantries, community mental health, welcoming spaces, community sport and LGBTQ+ health.
  • Its grants are stated to fall between £500 and £5,000, and the Community Micro Grants are £500, so a modest request in that range fits.
  • For the micro grants, speak to its Community Partnerships Coach before you submit, and check its website for submission dates, which are announced for each grant round.
  • Your application should show how conversations with your community suggest the activity will work, what similar activities you have delivered and the outcomes they achieved, and you should be ready to report the change your activity made.
  • Organisations outside the voluntary and community sector definition, those that are not wholly not-for-profit, those without a board or management committee of at least three unpaid members, those not based in or committed long-term to Sandwell, and those that reinvest less than 50% of surpluses in Sandwell community benefit should not apply for the micro grants, and nor should activities taking place outside Sandwell or not supporting social connections, loneliness or healthy lifestyles.

Overview

Sandwell Council of Voluntary Organisations – SCVO is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 1071514).

Sandwell Council of Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) is an umbrella organisation that supports and represents voluntary organisations and community groups working in Sandwell, and promotes volunteering and resident participation in civic life. It has more than 500 member organisations and has distributed over £800,000 locally to the voluntary sector through grants to over 100 organisations. Its programmes include the Community Grants Programme, with grants of £500 to £5,000, and the Community Micro Grants, at £500.

What they fund

Priority Areas

SCVO delivers grants for voluntary and community organisations and groups in Sandwell, administering some programmes on behalf of local, regional or national funders. Its programmes support community activity that builds social connections, tackles loneliness and isolation, and promotes healthy lifestyles. Stated strands include food pantry development, positive community mental health, welcoming spaces, community sport, and improved physical and mental health, healthcare access and social connections for the LGBTQ+ community. SCVO also supports cost-of-living work and local youth charities providing emotional wellbeing support, and works with community anchor organisations on capability, confidence and resilience among vulnerable and marginalised communities. It publicises grant opportunities, helps organisations submit clear applications, and convenes local panels to assess requests.

Themes

  • Social connections
  • Healthy lifestyles
  • Food pantry development
  • Community mental health
  • Welcoming spaces
  • Community sport
  • LGBTQ+ health

Geographic Focus

Sandwell.

What they don't fund

  • SCVO Vision 2030 Community Micro Grants only:
    • Organisations that do not fit within the definition of the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) as detailed in Appendix 1 are not eligible for funding
    • Organisations that are not wholly not-for-profit and/or distribute profits or assets for personal or private gain are not eligible
    • Organisations without a Board or Management Committee comprising a minimum of 3 members (ideally unrelated) who give their time in a voluntary (unpaid) capacity are not eligible
    • Organisations whose Board or Management Committee is not locally based and that cannot demonstrate their long-term commitment to Sandwell are not eligible
    • Organisations that are not actively delivering services in Sandwell or undertaking activities for the benefit of Sandwell Communities are not eligible
    • Organisations that do not principally reinvest financial surpluses to further social, environmental or cultural objectives that bring a significant community benefit to Sandwell are not eligible
    • Organisations that reinvest less than 50% of any financial surpluses in Sandwell for community benefit are not eligible
    • Activities that do not take place in Sandwell are not eligible for funding
    • Activities that do not support building social connections, tackling loneliness and isolation, or healthy lifestyles are not eligible for funding

How to apply

Prospective applicants to the community micro-grants programme must first have a conversation with SCVO’s Community Partnerships Coach before submitting an application.

Deadlines: Submission dates for each grant round are announced through SCVO’s media channels, including its website.

Application success factors

What the charity says:

  • Applicants should show how conversations with their community indicate that the proposed activity will work.
  • Applicants should explain what similar activities they have delivered successfully and the outputs or outcomes achieved.
  • Grantees are asked to report on the change their activity made and how they evidenced it.

Where they fund

Where it says it funds

Similar funders

Funders supporting work similar to Sandwell Council of Voluntary Organisations – SCVO.

Five years of accounts

Financial yearIncomeExpenditureGrants paidAccounts document
year to 31 March 2021£1,173,159£1,132,849£594,871Accounts for year to 31 March 2021
year to 31 March 2022£1,576,680£1,543,683£902,288Accounts for year to 31 March 2022
year to 31 March 2023£1,887,249£1,852,177£1,124,928Accounts for year to 31 March 2023
year to 31 March 2024£1,918,117£1,883,109£1,146,534Accounts for year to 31 March 2024
year to 31 March 2025£1,561,757£1,561,110£800,000Accounts for year to 31 March 2025

Income vs grants paid

IncomeGrants paid

Total value each financial year

YE 2021
£595k grants
YE 2022
£902k grants
YE 2023
£1.1M grants
YE 2024
£1.1M grants
YE 2025
£800k awarded

Grants paid stayed within income across the 5 years shown.

  • Grants paid, year to 31 March 2021; year to 31 March 2022; 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.

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

  • Annual report (year to 31 March 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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