The Comino Foundation

Charity Number: 312875

Annual Expenditure: £1.0M

Stay updated on changes from The Comino Foundation and other funders

Get daily notifications about new funding opportunities, deadline changes, and programme updates from UK funders.

Free Email Updates

Quick Stats

  • Annual Expenditure: £967,819 (FY 2022/23)
  • Annual Income: £93,469 (FY 2022/23)
  • Success Rate: Not publicly available
  • Decision Time: Not publicly available
  • Grant Range: Not publicly disclosed
  • Geographic Focus: United Kingdom (primarily England)
  • Application Method: No public application process - works through selected grantees

Contact Details

Website: www.cominofoundation.org.uk

Email: administrator@cominofoundation.org.uk

Phone: 07904 467625

Administrator: Sarah Mareschall

Overview

The Comino Foundation is a UK educational charity founded in 1971 by Australian-born engineer and inventor Demetrius Comino OBE and his daughter Anna Comino-James. With total expenditure of £967,819 in FY 2022/23, the Foundation focuses on developing young people's capabilities and their capacity to make things happen. The Foundation's vision is of “a Britain in which people are equipped and motivated to live fulfilling and purposeful lives,” with a particular emphasis on changing British attitudes toward industry and manufacturing. Operating primarily through a network of carefully selected grantees coordinated by a Development Fellow, the Foundation takes a strategic, partnership-based approach rather than accepting open applications. The Great Science Share for Schools, one of their key supported initiatives, received UNESCO UK National Commission Patronage in 2024 and won the Royal Society of Chemistry's Team Prize for Excellence in Primary Education.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

The Foundation does not operate traditional grant programs with published funding ranges. Instead, it works through a selective network of grantees who deliver projects aligned with the Foundation's strategic priorities. The Foundation hosts an annual overnight gathering where grantees provide updates and identify collaboration opportunities.

Priority Areas

The Foundation has defined three core priorities for its work:

1. Social Opportunity

Supporting young people from all backgrounds to achieve fulfilling, productive lives aligned with their values.

2. Personal Capabilities

Developing approaches that enhance young people's personal capacity to cope with the demands of growing up, adult life, and careers. This includes developing creativity, motivation, and the desire to create positive change.

3. Improving Practical, Technical, Vocational Capability

Emphasizing capabilities related to designing and making, innovation, and manufacturing. This reflects the Foundation's commitment to changing British attitudes toward industry.

Current Grantees

The Foundation works in partnership with schools and young people through its established grantee network, including:

  • Science & Engineering Education Research and Innovation Hub (SEERIH) at the University of Manchester - Pioneering the Great Science Share for Schools campaign, reaching schools across the UK and into over 30 countries globally
  • Expansive Education Network based at the Centre for Real-World Learning, University of Winchester
  • Ideas Foundation - Running creative workshops and educational programs across the Northwest
  • RSA (Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce) - Educational partnerships
  • Sheffield Hallam University - STEM Leadership qualification program
  • Homeground, Liverpool - Intense mentoring for homeless young people
  • PACE Centre - Supporting children with motor disorders
  • RSA Academy in Tipton - One of the Comino Centres continuing the Foundation's work

What They Don't Fund

The Foundation does not accept unsolicited applications from organizations outside their selected grantee network. They do not operate an open grant program for general educational initiatives.

Helpful Hinchilla

Ready to write a winning application for The Comino Foundation?

Our AI helps you craft proposals that match their exact priorities. Save 10+ hours and increase your success rate.

Get Free Beta Access

Governance and Leadership

Board of Trustees

Professor José Chambers MBE (Chair since September 2023)

Former Assistant Vice Chancellor at University of Winchester. Awarded MBE in 2011 for services to higher education. Joined the board in 2021 after serving as Development Fellow for the Foundation.

Anna Comino-James FRSA (Co-Founder)

Founded The Potential Trust in 1984 to enhance education for high-potential students. Founder member of GT Voice network for gifted and talented education. Facilitates Potential Conferences exploring creative collaboration.

David L. Perry FRSA

Trustee since 2011; served as Chair 2020-2023. Over 50 years leading curriculum innovation in design education. Directed Royal College of Art Schools Technology project in the 1990s.

Mumtaz Bashir-Hanid JP, DL

Strategic management consultant across public, private, and third sectors. Education Commissioner to Oldham (2011); created “Collaborate to Innovate Project.” Designed Pre-Volunteer Programme for Manchester Commonwealth Games (2002).

Dee Halligan

Designer and strategist specializing in engagement and learning for sustainability. Leads research team at Forth (Community Interest Company). Former Comino Foundation grantee, bringing firsthand experience.

Amrit Singh

Chief Operating Officer at National Institute of Teaching. Former COO of nasen; Deputy Chair at University of Wolverhampton. Background in financial services and multi-sector leadership.

Strategic Development Advisor

Professor Bill Lucas

Director of Centre for Real-World Learning at University of Winchester. Social entrepreneur, researcher, and educational reformer. Co-chair of PISA 2021 Creative Thinking test. Joined Foundation January 2022.

Comino Fellows

Distinguished advisors including Sir Mike Tomlinson CBE (former Chief Inspector of Schools), Matthew Taylor (former RSA CEO, now NHS Confederation Chief Executive), John Cridland CBE (former CBI Director General), and Paul Pritchard (JCB Group Head of Learning).

Application Process and Timeline

How to Apply

The Comino Foundation does not have a public application process. The Foundation operates as a strategic grant-maker working through a carefully selected network of grantees identified by trustees and the Development Fellow. Activities designed to support the Foundation's priorities are carried out through this established network rather than through open competitive grant rounds.

Grants are awarded based on trustee discretion and strategic alignment with the Foundation's long-term educational priorities. The Foundation seeks organizations and projects that can pilot innovative approaches to learning on a small scale before wider dissemination.

Getting on Their Radar

The Foundation identifies potential grantees through:

Sector Leadership and Recognition: Organizations demonstrating excellence in educational innovation, particularly those receiving national recognition or awards (such as the Great Science Share winning the Royal Society of Chemistry prize).

Annual Grantee Gathering: The Foundation hosts an overnight annual gathering where current grantees provide updates. This event enables participants to identify collaboration opportunities, suggesting that demonstrating potential for collaborative work within the Foundation's existing network could be valuable.

Professional Networks: The Foundation engages with research and professional development networks like the Expansive Education Network. Active participation in educational research and teacher professional development communities appears important.

Connection to Foundation Philosophy: Organizations aligned with the Foundation's distinctive approach - rooted in Demetrius Comino's GRASP methodology (Getting Results And Solving Problems / Getting Results and Seizing Potential) and the educational philosophy that “Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.”

University and Research Partnerships: Several grantees are university-based research centers (Manchester, Winchester, Sheffield Hallam), suggesting value in academic rigor and evidence-based approaches.

Advisory Network: With distinguished Fellows including former senior education leaders, being known within elite education policy and leadership circles may create visibility.

For organizations interested in the Foundation's work, contacting Administrator Sarah Mareschall at administrator@cominofoundation.org.uk would be the appropriate first step to express interest and learn about potential opportunities.

Decision Timeline

Not applicable - grants are awarded through trustee discretion rather than scheduled application cycles.

Success Rates

Not applicable - the Foundation does not accept open applications.

Reapplication Policy

Not applicable - the Foundation works through ongoing relationships with selected grantees rather than one-off grants with reapplication cycles.

Application Success Factors

While the Comino Foundation doesn't accept applications, understanding what they value in their grantees provides insight into their priorities:

Innovative Approaches to Learning: All grantees are developing and testing “innovative approaches to learning” that challenge conventional practice. The Foundation values experimentation and willingness to take educational risks.

Teacher as Innovator: According to Pat Walters, North West manager for the Ideas Foundation partnership: “The key to its success is the innovative teachers prepared to take risks.” The Foundation prioritizes work with educators who embrace innovation.

Small Scale to Large Impact: The Foundation's approach emphasizes “small scale” pilot projects designed to test new approaches before wider dissemination. They look for scalable models rather than one-off initiatives.

Collaborative Mindset: The annual grantee gathering enables participants to “achieve more together than they would individually.” Willingness to collaborate across the grantee network is valued.

Focus on Capabilities Over Content: The Foundation's philosophical approach emphasizes developing young people's capabilities and capacity to make things happen - “kindling a flame” rather than “filling a vessel.” Projects should focus on developing dispositions, mindsets, and practical skills.

Manufacturing and Making: Reflecting Demetrius Comino's engineering background, the Foundation maintains particular interest in practical, technical, and vocational capability related to designing, making, innovation, and manufacturing.

Research-Informed Practice: University-based research centers feature prominently among grantees (Manchester, Winchester, Sheffield Hallam), suggesting value placed on evidence-based approaches and rigorous evaluation.

Long-Term Relationships: The Foundation works through “a network of grantees” coordinated by their Development Fellow, suggesting they seek sustained partnerships rather than short-term projects.

Addressing Social Opportunity: Projects supporting young people from all backgrounds to achieve fulfilling lives aligned with their values receive attention, particularly work with disadvantaged young people (such as Homeground's work with homeless youth).

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • This is not an open application funder - The Comino Foundation operates through invitation and trustee discretion. Building visibility in educational innovation circles is essential before any funding relationship.
  • Think pilot-to-scale - The Foundation favors small-scale innovative projects designed to test new approaches before wider dissemination. Present work as testing ground for broader educational change.
  • Emphasize capability development - Align proposals with the Foundation's focus on developing young people's capabilities, motivation, and capacity to make things happen, rather than traditional knowledge-transfer approaches.
  • Connect to the GRASP methodology - Understanding Demetrius Comino's problem-solving approach and how your work aligns with “Getting Results And Solving Problems” can demonstrate philosophical alignment.
  • Demonstrate research rigor - University partnerships and evidence-based evaluation feature prominently among grantees. Academic credibility matters.
  • Show collaborative potential - The Foundation values grantees who can work together and learn from each other. Demonstrating openness to collaboration within a network of educators and researchers is important.
  • Manufacturing and making matter - The Foundation's distinctive commitment to changing British attitudes toward industry, particularly manufacturing, creates opportunities for projects emphasizing practical, technical, and vocational skills.

Similar Funders

These funders frequently fund the same charities:

🎯 You've done the research. Now write an application they can't refuse.

Hinchilla combines funder's specific priorities with your organisation's past successful grants and AI analysis of what reviewers want to see.

✓

Data privacy and security by default

✓

Your organisation's past successful grants and experience

✓

AI analysis of what reviewers want to see

✓

A compelling draft application in 10 minutes instead of 10 hours

Get Beta Access NowLearn More

References

All sources