The Millfield House Foundation

Quick Stats

• Annual Giving: £300,000 (approximately)
• Success Rate: Not applicable - invitation-only model
• Decision Time: No fixed timeline - trustees initiate relationships
• Grant Range: £40,000 - £131,228 (for multi-year strategic partnerships)
• Geographic Focus: North East of England (Tyne and Wear, Durham, Northumberland)

Contact Details

Website: www.mhfdn.org.uk

Email: cullagh@mhfdn.org.uk

Contact: Cullagh Warnock

Phone: 07595 280401

Address: Newcastle, NE6 5LB

Overview

The Millfield House Foundation was established in 1976 by businessman-academic Grigor McClelland (1922-2013) and Diana McClelland (1916-2000), endowed with shares in the family business, Laws Stores. Following the sale of Laws Stores in 1985, the Foundation received significant income that continues to fund its work today through an ethically managed endowment. In 1996, the Foundation made a strategic shift from funding projects that directly tackle deprivation to instead focusing on influencing public policies to achieve beneficial social change. The Foundation sponsors the “Outstanding Contribution to Social Change” award at the North East Charity Awards, celebrating organizations amplifying voices and driving social change. With annual giving of approximately £300,000 and total expenditure of £283,204 (year ending April 2025), the Foundation operates as a small but strategic grant-maker dedicated to reducing poverty and inequity through policy change in the North East of England.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

Strategic Partnerships (Core Funding)

The Foundation's primary grant-making mechanism is long-term strategic partnerships:

• Duration: Up to three years at a time
• Amounts: £40,000 to £131,228 per partnership (varies by partner size and scope)
• Core funding approach: Unrestricted support for policy work rather than project-specific grants
• Reapplication encouraged: Partners are actively encouraged to reapply at the end of their funding period
• Application method: Invitation only - trustees proactively identify and approach potential partners

One-Off Grants

Described as “very occasional,” these are rare exceptions to the strategic partnership model. No specific amounts or criteria are publicly documented.

Priority Areas

The Foundation funds organizations whose policy work addresses:

• Poverty reduction in the North East of England
• Reducing inequality and inequity through systemic change
• Social and economic change via policy influence
• Community empowerment and reducing social deprivation
• Issues affecting vulnerable populations (welfare reform, fuel poverty, child poverty, access to justice)

Preferred organizations:

• Work on policy and campaigning as an essential part of their core purpose (not as an add-on)
• Tend to work across multiple issues rather than concentrating on a single issue or group
• All work must be undertaken in and on behalf of the North East of England

What They Don't Fund

While not explicitly stated, the Foundation does not support:

• Organizations outside the North East of England
• Direct service delivery without a policy/campaigning component
• Organizations that don't work on underlying causes of poverty and inequality
• Short-term project funding (they prefer long-term strategic relationships)

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Governance and Leadership

The Foundation is governed by six trustees who bring diverse expertise in policy, social justice, and public sector leadership. None receive remuneration.

Jonathan Walker (Chair)

Head of Policy at the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEX), leading work on access to justice, legal aid reform, and diversity in the legal profession. Formerly Policy Director at North East England Chamber of Commerce.

Yvonne Gale

Chartered Accountant specializing in impact investment funds, serving as Chair of the Investment Committee. Her motivation stems from “a childhood where poverty and inequality were ever present.”

Rosie Lewis

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) activist and consultant with expertise serving migrant and marginalized women and children. Currently pursuing a PhD at Durham University.

Emma Richardson

Senior Manager and Poverty Lead at Northumberland County Council with 25 years of community development experience, specializing in culture, social policy, and inequality reduction.

Matt Roche

Head Grant Programme Manager at the Mercers' Company and Darlington Councillor (Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Health and Housing). Brings 30+ years of third sector experience and previously led a £200m+ portfolio at Big Lottery Fund supporting 2,500+ charities.

Laura Seebohm

Chief Executive of WWIN Specialist Domestic Abuse Service for Sunderland with 28 years of statutory and voluntary sector experience. Former Chief Executive of Maternal Mental Health Alliance, with specialist expertise in women's services and domestic abuse policy.

Application Process and Timeline

How to Apply

The Millfield House Foundation does not have a public application process. This is a proactive, invitation-only funder where trustees and the Trust Manager identify and approach potential strategic partners based on their own observation and experience.

According to their documented process: "The Trustees and Trust Manager actively seek out new partners when funds permit and may test relationships by funding for a limited period before committing to longer-term partnerships. Each new partnership is decided after considerable discussion and is based on the Foundation's experience and observation of the prospective partner at work."

Unsolicited applications are not accepted through a formal process. Organizations interested in partnership should focus on building visibility for their policy work in the North East.

Getting on Their Radar

The Foundation identifies potential partners through direct observation and experience of their work. Based on their documented approach:

Build Policy Profile in the North East:

• The Foundation specifically looks for organizations they can observe “at work” - meaning visibility of your policy and campaigning activities is crucial
• Their selection is based on “experience and observation” of prospective partners, suggesting they follow organizations' work over time before approaching them

Demonstrate Alignment with Their Model:

• Policy and campaigning must be “an essential rather than an additional part of core purpose”
• Show work addressing underlying causes, not just symptoms
• Demonstrate cross-issue work rather than single-issue focus (though trustees may vary this criterion)

Leverage Existing Network:

• The Foundation facilitates opportunities for their Strategic Partners to “work together, share expertise and learn from one another”
• Being known to current strategic partners may provide visibility

North East Charity Awards:

• The Foundation sponsors the “Outstanding Contribution to Social Change” award category, which celebrates organizations “amplifying the voices of the people they represent and driving social change”
• Strong performance or nomination in this category may increase visibility with trustees

Decision Timeline

Not applicable - the Foundation operates on a proactive identification model rather than a responsive grant cycle. When trustees identify a promising organization, they may “test relationships by funding for a limited period before committing to longer-term partnerships.”

Success Rates

Not applicable - there is no competitive application process. The Foundation has made 39 grants to 14 recipients since 2013, currently supporting five strategic partners at any given time.

Reapplication Policy

Strategic partners are “actively encouraged to re-apply” at the end of their three-year funding period. The Foundation has demonstrated long-term commitment to partners, with IPPR North supported continuously since 2003 (becoming a Strategic Partner in 2015) and VONNE supported since 2013.

Application Success Factors

While there is no application process, organizations positioning themselves for potential partnership should understand what makes the Foundation's approach distinctive:

The Foundation's Own Words on Their Approach:

• “We focus on underlying causes and take a relational approach to our grant-making”
• “We work alongside the organisations we fund (our Strategic Partners) as we learn together how best to effect policy change”
• "Each new partnership is decided after considerable discussion and is based on the Foundation's experience and observation of the prospective partner at work"

Profile of Current Strategic Partners (as of 2025):

1. Citizens Advice Newcastle (£130,050/3 years to 2027) - Analyzes welfare reform impacts on vulnerable populations, campaigns for fairer policies, supports regional Citizens Advice organizations

1. IPPR North (£126,000/3 years to 2025) - Think tank for Northern England, produces policy research and publications (supported continuously since 2003)

1. National Energy Action (£40,000/2 years to 2024) - Fuel poverty charity with focus on policy work across the North East

1. North East Child Poverty Commission (£131,228/3 years to 2025) - Cross-sector partnership addressing child poverty through policy analysis, research, events, and youth engagement (Strategic Partner since 2016)

1. Tyne and Wear Citizens (£98,418/3 years to 2027) - Community organizing across five local authorities on climate justice, poverty reduction, and racial justice in education

1. VONNE (£126,000/3 years to 2025) - Regional support body for voluntary, community, and social enterprise sectors (Strategic Partner since 2013)

Common Characteristics of Partners:

• All combine direct knowledge/evidence gathering with policy advocacy
• Most provide core infrastructure or analysis for the wider sector
• Several work across multiple local authorities in the region
• Policy work is integral to their mission, not peripheral
• Organizations demonstrate expertise in their issue area while connecting to broader poverty/inequality themes

What Trustees Value:

• Core funding approach: The Foundation provides unrestricted support for policy work, signaling they trust partners' expertise
• Relational learning: Reference to learning “together how best to effect policy change” suggests openness to experimentation and honest dialogue
• Extended observation period: Testing relationships with “limited period” funding before full partnership suggests they value proven track record over proposals
• Cross-sector connection: Trustee Yvonne Gale's personal connection to poverty issues and the board's mix of policy, frontline, and grant-making expertise suggests they value organizations that bridge lived experience with policy impact

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

• This is an invitation-only funder - there is no application form to complete or funding rounds to target; focus instead on building the profile and impact of your policy work in the North East

• Demonstration over application - the Foundation selects partners based on observing their work over time, not on the strength of written proposals; invest in making your policy impact visible and documentable

• Policy must be core, not peripheral - organizations where campaigning or policy work is an “add-on” activity are unlikely to be selected; the Foundation funds organizations where influencing systemic change is central to mission

• Think long-term relationships, not project grants - strategic partnerships last three years with encouraged reapplication (IPPR North supported since 2003); this funder is looking for sustained policy partnership, not project funding

• Cross-issue work is valued - while the Foundation considers varying this criterion, their current partners mostly work across multiple aspects of poverty/inequality rather than single issues

• Geographic focus is non-negotiable - all work must be undertaken in and on behalf of the North East of England (Durham, Gateshead, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland, South Tyneside, Stockton-on-Tees, Sunderland)

• Relationship building may begin with smaller engagement - trustees may “test relationships by funding for a limited period” before full strategic partnership, suggesting initial connection might start small

References

• Millfield House Foundation Official Website -
• Millfield House Foundation - About Us -
• Millfield House Foundation - Current Grants -
• Millfield House Foundation - Strategic Partners -
• Millfield House Foundation - Trustees -
• The Millfield House Foundation - Charity Commission Register -
• 360Giving GrantNav - Millfield House Foundation -
• Philanthropy North East - Millfield House Foundation -
• Grigor McClelland - Philanthropy North East -
• North East Charity Awards 2023 - Millfield House Foundation -
• North East Charity Awards 2025 - Millfield House Foundation -