The Harpur Trust
At a glance
Key takeaways
- The Trust funds projects that improve lives in Bedford Borough, and its stated themes include poverty and disadvantage, housing and homelessness, health and wellbeing, education and stronger communities, so check that your work fits one of these and helps people in the Borough.
- Requests of £5,000 or less go straight to the full application form, while larger requests first go through a proposal stage for panel consideration, and for very large requests the Trust says that prior discussion with it can matter.
- If your group is small, with an annual income no greater than £25,000 and little experience of grant applications, the Community Micro Grants route, with grants of up to £2,000, starts with an emailed Expression of Interest.
- Do not apply for hospital projects, standalone events or trips, school staff salaries or projects that promote a particular religion, and do not apply if your organisation is not a registered charity, a Community Interest Company (CIC) Ltd by Guarantee or another non-profit organisation.
Overview
The Harpur Trust is a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 1066861).
The Harpur Trust is a local foundation founded over 450 years ago by a local man, born to humble beginnings, who made his fortune as a merchant tailor. It uses his legacy to benefit the inhabitants of the Borough of Bedford through the promotion of education, the relief of poverty, sickness and distress, and the provision of recreational facilities with a social welfare purpose. It awards more than £1 million a year in grants. Its two named programmes are Bedford Giving, which brings the whole community together to support children and young people facing disadvantage, and the Accelerator Programme, which supports schools across Bedford to help low income children aged 0-11 make more rapid progress in education.
What they fund
Priority Areas
The Harpur Trust gives grants to charities and community groups for projects that improve lives in Bedford Borough. Its strategy focuses on tackling poverty and disadvantage and building stronger communities, alongside work in housing and homelessness, health and wellbeing, mental health, education and training, crime and safety, and sport and recreation. It supports poverty alleviation, food security, advice services, community facilities, cohesion, inclusion and youth work focused on disadvantage. Education grants may support community-based initiatives and work in schools; school projects should raise aspirations, broaden horizons and break the link between inequality and unfulfilled educational potential, while being sustainable or having long-term impact. Grant support can include staffing, running and capital costs for projects and core services.
Themes
- Poverty and disadvantage
- Stronger communities
- Housing and homelessness
- Health and wellbeing
- Mental health
- Education and training
- Sport and recreation
Geographic Focus
Bedford Borough.
What they don't fund
- Projects that promote a particular religion, although we do fund faith groups for secular work which is open to all regardless of faith
- Salaries for posts only open to people from a particular faith
- Projects which we consider to be the responsibility of the local authority or national government, such as statutory obligations to deliver core curriculum in schools
- Core costs for alternative provision agencies, though we may fund project costs
- School staff salaries
- Supplementary schools which are for communities other than those which historically struggle to benefit from formal education
- Unsolicited applications for school capital projects
- Repeat or long-term funding for specific projects in individual schools
- Hospital projects, capital or otherwise
- Complementary or alternative therapies unless they are part of a general well-being proposal
- Standalone events (please see information about event sponsorship on our website)
- Costs already incurred, depreciation or lost opportunity costs (for example, funding requested to replace income lost by providing a venue for free rather than charging)
- Standalone trips and expeditions
- Unsolicited requests for funding for university research projects
- Your organisation must be a registered charity, Community Interest Company (CIC) Ltd by Guarantee or other non-profit organisation
- Your project must specifically help people in Bedford Borough and fall within the boundaries outlined in the map
- We do not fund the pursuit of sporting excellence
- We are unlikely to fund sports clubs more regularly than once every five years
How to apply
For standard grants, register the application. Requests above £5,000 go through a proposal stage for panel consideration; if the proposal appears a good fit, the organisation is invited to submit a full application. Requests of £5,000 or less go directly to the full application form. The Community Micro Grants route starts with an emailed Expression of Interest, followed by a discussion about eligibility and a meeting with the group.
Who can apply:
- Be a registered charity, Community Interest Company (CIC) Ltd by Guarantee or other non-profit organisation.
- Have a suitable governing document (e.g. constitution/articles).
- Have a bank account in the name of the organisation.
- Have a committee of at least three unrelated people/trustees/directors.
- Community Micro Grants: Small grassroots community organisations, charities, and community interest companies (limited by guarantee only) with an annual income no greater that £25,000, and with little or no experience of making grant applications as an organisation or team.
What to send:
- Community Micro Grants
- The name of your organisation.
- The name and contact details for the lead contact.
- The type of organisation.
- What it does and a brief overview what you will be seeking funding for.
Applying again: Organisations can apply for multi-year or repeat funding.
Application success factors
What the charity says:
- The project should fit the Trust’s objectives and priorities.
- The application should explain the need and demand for the project.
- The organisation’s governance and finances are considered.
- Applicants should explain how they will assess whether the project makes a difference.
- Projects should explain how they address inequality.
- School initiatives should raise aspirations, broaden horizons and break the link between inequality and unfulfilled educational potential, and be sustainable or have long-term impact.
- For very large requests, a record of successfully running Harpur Trust-funded projects and prior discussion with the Trust can matter.
- School-based organisations should secure the agreement of the schools they will work with and, if possible, co-design their projects with them.
Where they fund
Where it says it funds
Similar funders
Funders supporting work similar to The Harpur Trust.
Five years of accounts
| Financial year | Income | Expenditure | Grants paid | Accounts document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| year to 30 June 2021 | £55,138,000 | £54,895,000 | £1,461,349 | Accounts for year to 30 June 2021 |
| year to 30 June 2022 | £60,686,000 | £60,068,000 | £1,206,554 | Accounts for year to 30 June 2022 |
| year to 30 June 2023 | £68,626,000 | £67,752,000 | £1,216,197 | Accounts for year to 30 June 2023 |
| year to 30 June 2024 | £75,469,000 | £73,994,000 | £1,231,188 | Accounts for year to 30 June 2024 |
| year to 30 June 2025 | £72,951,000 | £72,827,000 | £1,379,518 | Accounts for year to 30 June 2025 |
Income vs grants paid
IncomeGrants paid
Total value each financial year
Grants paid stayed within income across the 5 years shown.
- Grants paid, year to 30 June 2021; year to 30 June 2022; 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 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
Registers and filings
Other sources
- harpurtrust.org.uk
- harpurtrust.org.uk/apply-for-help/grants-for-charities-and-community-groups · read on 31 October 2026
- harpurtrust.org.uk/our-grants-strategy · read on 31 October 2026
- harpurtrust.org.uk/apply-for-help/grants-for-charities-and-community-groups/how-to-apply · read on 31 October 2026
- harpurtrust.org.uk/apply-for-help/grants-for-charities-and-community-groups/community-micro-grants · read on 31 October 2026
- harpurtrust.org.uk/apply-for-help/grants-for-charities-and-community-groups/managing-your-grant/help-filling-out-your-application-form · read on 31 October 2026
- harpurtrust.org.uk/contact-us · read on 31 October 2026
- Annual report (year to 30 June 2025)
This profile draws on the funder’s own website as well as its filed accounts.
Sources last checked on 31 October 2026.
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At a glance
Applying to The Harpur Trust?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
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Applying to The Harpur Trust?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required