The Dewan Foundation Limited

Quick Stats

• Annual Income: £428,035 (2024/25)
• Annual Expenditure: £543,923 (2024/25)
• Success Rate: Not publicly available
• Decision Time: Not publicly disclosed
• Grant Range: Not publicly disclosed
• Geographic Focus: India and Harrow (UK)
• Registered Charity Number: 1089688

Contact Details

Address: 28 Church Road, Stanmore, Middlesex, HA7 4XR

Email: chrisc@parkercavendish.co.uk

Phone: 020 8954 2727

Website: No public website identified

The contact email is associated with Parker Cavendish, a firm of Chartered Accountants in Stanmore that provides services to charities.

Overview

The Dewan Foundation Limited was registered as a charitable company on 7 December 2001 (Company Number 04269631). This private family foundation operates primarily through grant-making to organizations working in India and the Harrow area of the UK. The foundation's stated purposes are to relieve poverty, distress and suffering (including starvation, sickness or physical disability) arising from public calamities or otherwise, and to advance education and health protection in any part of the world. The foundation has focused on funding micro-enterprises to help women living below the poverty line, having supported tens of thousands of such enterprises according to information from founder trustee Ramesh Dewan. The foundation is self-funding and operates as a private family charitable vehicle. With annual expenditure of over £540,000 in the most recent financial year, the foundation makes grants to organizations rather than individuals.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

The Dewan Foundation Limited does not operate named grant programs or publish specific funding streams. The foundation makes grants at the discretion of its trustees to organizations working in their priority areas.

Priority Areas

Based on the charity's registered purposes and available information:

• Poverty Relief: Prevention and relief of poverty, particularly supporting women through micro-enterprise funding
• Overseas Aid/Famine Relief: Addressing humanitarian crises and ongoing poverty in India
• Health: Protection and preservation of health, particularly for those affected by sickness or disability
• Education: Advancement of education in any part of the world
• Disaster Relief: Relief of suffering from public calamities including famine, earthquake, pestilence, war or civil disturbance

The foundation has a documented focus on empowering women living below the poverty line through micro-enterprise support, particularly in India.

What They Don't Fund

The foundation's exclusions are not publicly documented. As a private family foundation, they appear to focus exclusively on their stated charitable purposes related to poverty relief, education, and health in India and locally in Harrow.

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Governance and Leadership

Trustees

The foundation is governed by four trustees, all members of the Dewan family:

Ramesh Dewan (Chair)

• Appointed: 14 August 2001
• Professional publisher for over 45 years who launched and published over 40 national and international magazines
• Involved in property development, with investment in over 40 million square feet of commercial property in the UK
• Also serves as trustee of Brighter Future International Trust, which works with vulnerable people in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka
• Described as “a passionate believer in social justice and equal opportunities”
• Previously trustee of DM Thomas Foundation for Young People

Zalina Dewan (Secretary and Director)

• Appointed: 14 August 2001
• British national

Sheena Selina Dewan (Director)

• Appointed: 14 August 2001
• British national

Naresh Dewan (Director)

• Appointed: 4 May 2017
• American national, based in Pennsylvania, USA

The foundation has 5 volunteers and no paid staff. No trustees receive remuneration, payments or benefits from the charity.

Application Process and Timeline

How to Apply

The Dewan Foundation Limited does not have a public application process. This is a private family foundation that makes grants through trustee discretion. The foundation does not publish application guidelines, deadlines, or funding criteria on a website or through other public channels.

Grants appear to be awarded based on the trustees' knowledge of organizations working in their areas of interest, particularly in India where the foundation has focused its activities, and locally in Harrow.

Decision Timeline

Decision timelines are not publicly disclosed. As a private foundation operating through trustee discretion, funding decisions are likely made at trustee meetings throughout the year based on the foundation's internal processes.

Success Rates

Success rates and application statistics are not available, as the foundation does not accept unsolicited applications.

Reapplication Policy

Not applicable, as there is no public application process.

Application Success Factors

Given the absence of a public application process, organizations seeking to connect with The Dewan Foundation Limited would need to:

Alignment with Core Mission: The foundation has a clear focus on poverty relief, particularly through micro-enterprise support for women in India. Organizations working in this space, or addressing humanitarian needs in India, would be most aligned with the foundation's demonstrated interests.

Geographic Focus: Priority appears to be given to work in India, with some local activity in the Harrow area of the UK.

Connection to Trustee Interests: As a family foundation led by Ramesh Dewan, organizations may benefit from connections through his other charitable involvement, particularly Brighter Future International Trust which works on poverty relief, leprosy, HIV/AIDS, TB, disability and malnutrition in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Empowerment Approach: The foundation's documented support for micro-enterprises suggests they favor programs that help people help themselves rather than pure relief work.

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

• This is a private family foundation with no public application process – unsolicited applications are unlikely to be accepted
• The foundation has spent over £540,000 annually, indicating significant grant-making capacity
• Primary focus is India, particularly poverty relief through micro-enterprise support for women
• Secondary geographic focus is the Harrow area in the UK
• The foundation operates through trustee discretion with grants awarded based on the trustees' knowledge and interests
• Ramesh Dewan's involvement with Brighter Future International Trust may provide insight into the types of organizations and causes the foundation supports
• With only 4 family trustees and no staff, this is a lean operation that likely works with a limited number of partner organizations
• Organizations working in India on poverty relief, women's empowerment, health, education, or disaster relief may be of interest if they can establish a relationship with the trustees

References

• Charity Commission Register: The Dewan Foundation Limited (Charity Number 1089688). Available at: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-details/?regid=1089688 (Accessed: 28 December 2025)
• Companies House: The Dewan Foundation Limited (Company Number 04269631). Available at: https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/04269631 (Accessed: 28 December 2025)
• Brighter Future International Trust: Ramesh Dewan biography. Available at: https://brighterfuture.org.uk/about-us/ramesh-dewan (Accessed: 28 December 2025)
• Charity Commission Register: Trustee Information for The Dewan Foundation Limited. Available at: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-search/-/charity-details/3985470/trustees (Accessed: 28 December 2025)