Sound Connections

Registered charity 1095947 · since 2003sound-connections.org.uk·England·Updated 29 October 2026

Key takeaways

The work centres on music and wider arts with young people, so it fits best for organisations running music projects or youth voice work, particularly those connected to Music Hubs or young creatives.
Neither a typical grant size nor a grant range is stated, so ask the contact shown on its website about the likely scale of a request before you set an amount.
No application process is published, so get in touch first rather than sending a formal application.
Its registered area of operation is throughout England, but no narrower geographic focus is stated, so check with the funder about where it funds.
The funding comes alongside mentoring, networking and organisational support, so a conversation may be a useful first step.

Overview

Sound Connections is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 1095947).

Sound Connections is a registered charity in England and Wales whose stated purpose is to advance education in the arts for the public benefit. Its mission is to ensure that all children and young people can experience music and creative opportunities that are relevant to them and responsive to their needs in a changing world. It works across the music community and wider arts and culture sectors, combining funding with professional development, mentoring, networking, consultancy and organisational support. Its programmes include Generate, a micro-grant programme for young creatives to realise self-directed projects, Activate, which invests in Music Hubs to strengthen youth voice work, and Innovate, which has supported projects testing different approaches to working with young people.

What they fund

Priority Areas

Sound Connections works across the music community and wider arts and culture sectors to achieve inclusion, equity and social justice with young people. It supports young people, the music education workforce, Music Hubs, music education and community organisations, and organisations in the wider creative and cultural sector. Its work combines funding with professional development, mentoring, networking, consultancy and organisational support. Generate backs young creatives to realise self-directed projects, while Activate invests in Music Hubs to strengthen youth voice work; Innovate has supported projects testing different approaches to working with young people. It works collaboratively, puts young people at the heart of decision-making and helps organisations develop and improve how they work with young people.

Themes

Music projects
Youth voice in music

How to apply

No application process is published in the charity's annual report, its register entry or its website. The contact shown is for getting in touch.

Where they fund

Registered area of operation (Charity Commission)

England

Similar funders

Funders supporting work similar to Sound Connections.

Youth MusicFixed deadlinesGave £9.9M Big ChangeInvitation onlyGave £194k Curious MindsNo public processGave £20,039 The Mercers Charitable FoundationNo public processGave £3.7M Ormiston TrustNo public processGave £554k The Mayfield Valley Arts TrustFixed deadlinesGave £100k Hays Travel FoundationRollingGave £469k The Mighty CreativesNo public process Michael Carrick FoundationRollingGave £70,942 Growing Faith FoundationFixed deadlines

Five years of accounts

Financial year	Income	Expenditure	Grants paid	Accounts document
year to 31 March 2021	£536,370	£489,398	—	Accounts for year to 31 March 2021
year to 31 March 2022	£638,190	£547,097	—	Accounts for year to 31 March 2022
year to 31 March 2023	£354,312	£381,148	—	Accounts for year to 31 March 2023
year to 31 March 2024	£379,882	£420,593	—	Accounts for year to 31 March 2024
year to 31 March 2025	£425,591	£427,893	—	Accounts for year to 31 March 2025

— 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.