The Tudor Trust

Charity Number: 1105580

Annual Expenditure: £18.7M
Throughout England And Wales, Kenya, Uganda, United States, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Italy, Malawi

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Quick Stats

  • Annual Giving: £16 million (2023-24)
  • Total Assets: £230 million
  • Success Rate: Historically ~10% (pre-2025 transformation)
  • Decision Time: 3 months (from second stage)
  • Grant Range: £10,000 - £1,550,000 (up to 6 years)
  • Geographic Focus: UK-wide
  • Application Status: INVITATION-ONLY (closed to open applications)

Contact Details

General enquiries: hello@tudortrust.org.uk

Finance: finance@tudortrust.org.uk

Phone: 020 7727 8522

Website: www.tudortrust.org.uk

Important Note: The Trust cannot accept unsolicited funding applications and organizations should not spend time preparing proposals to send to them.

Overview

The Tudor Trust (registered charity 1105580) is one of the UK's largest independent grant-making trusts with assets of £230 million. Founded as a family trust, it underwent a major transformation in 2022-2025, with the final family trustee stepping down in 2024 and a new board appointed to implement an anti-racist mission. In 2025, Tudor launched its new “Change We Seek” strategy, fundamentally shifting from an open application process to invitation-only grant-making focused on advancing racial justice. The Trust committed just under £16 million in grants in 2023-24 and awarded £10 million to 18 organizations in its first post-transformation funding round. Tudor now operates with a systems-thinking approach, believing that racial justice is the foundation for dismantling social, economic, and environmental injustice.

Funding Priorities

Current Strategy: “Change We Seek” (2025 onwards)

Mission: To advance racial justice by resourcing power within communities.

Focus Areas:

  • Organizations doing work that authentically uplifts communities and has potential to bring about wider social, economic, and environmental change
  • Initiatives that strengthen connections between diverse communities
  • Work that tackles root causes of systemic inequity and racial injustice through a racial justice lens
  • Building ecosystems that move toward more just and equitable ways of living

Grant Programs

Learning Partners: Long-term core funding of up to 6 years. The first cohort of 11 organizations received a total of £9.3 million collectively.

Exploration Partners: Core grants of £100,000 per organization to test alignment and potential for deeper partnership.

Grant Types Available

  • Core funding (primary focus)
  • Project grants
  • Capital grants (buildings or equipment)
  • Organizational strengthening grants
  • Multi-year grants

What They Don't Fund

  • Larger charities that are already well-funded
  • Social clubs or sports clubs
  • One-off events

Historical Focus (Pre-2025 Transformation)

Previously, Tudor supported organizations working with people at the margins of society with limited access to resources and opportunities, particularly smaller organizations with turnover under £1 million. This approach has been superseded by the invitation-only racial justice focus.

Governance and Leadership

Board of Trustees

  • Derek Bardowell - Chair (appointed 2024)
  • Jonathan Bell
  • Ozzie Clarke-Binns
  • Christienna Fryar
  • Anthony Murphy
  • Saba Shafi
  • Susan Wang
  • Georgina Wilson

Senior Leadership

  • Raji Hunjan - CEO/Director

Key Leadership Perspectives

Derek Bardowell (Chair): "I'm delighted to take on this role and am deeply honoured by the faith shown in my leadership by the previous Board."

Raji Hunjan (CEO) on Derek's appointment: “Derek is one of the most respected leaders in the racial and social justice sector. His nearly two decades of work have given him strong insights and he has all the credentials to do a fantastic job in supporting the organisation as we work towards our new strategy.”

Matt Dunwell (former Chair) on Christopher Graves (former Director, retired after 38 years): "Christopher has made a significant contribution to Tudor and to the voluntary sector over nearly four decades. He has kept a relatively low profile in the sector but has quietly influenced the way Foundations relate to their grantees through developing Tudor's own unique way of working."

Christopher Graves: “What we have achieved at Tudor over the years has been remarkable and owes much to dedicated trustees and staff putting the needs of applicants first.”

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

CRITICAL UPDATE: The Tudor Trust is operating on an invitation-only basis for the foreseeable future. Organizations cannot submit unsolicited applications.

How Organizations Are Identified:

  • Tudor's team proactively identifies potential grant partners through their networks
  • Internal research and systems-driven approach to learning
  • Organizations aligned with their racial justice mission

Important: Organizations should not spend time preparing funding proposals to send to Tudor, as they are unable to take forward applications that reach them this way.

Historical Application Process (For Reference Only)

Previously, Tudor operated a two-stage application process:

Stage 1: Brief online form with cover letter, answers to five application questions, and latest annual accounts submitted via online portal

Stage 2: If successful at Stage 1, in-depth conversation via phone or Zoom with a grant manager

Decision Timeline

Historical: Decisions were made on most applications within 3 months of progressing to the second stage.

Current: Timeline depends on Tudor's proactive identification and invitation process.

Success Rates

Historical: Approximately 10% of applications were funded (around 1 in 10) due to high application volume and broad eligibility criteria.

Current: Not applicable as funding is now invitation-only.

Reapplication Policy

Not applicable under current invitation-only model. Historical information on reapplication policies for unsuccessful applicants is not publicly available.

Application Success Factors

For Organizations Already Invited

Given the invitation-only model, the following insights from Tudor's transformation and values may be helpful:

Alignment Factors:

  • Authentic work that uplifts communities experiencing racial injustice
  • Root causes approach to systemic inequity
  • Potential to contribute to wider social, economic, and environmental change
  • Strengthening connections between diverse communities
  • Led by people with deep understanding of the communities they serve

Tudor's Approach to Grant-Making:

  • Values the strength of their people, culture, and relationships with partners
  • Committed to total asset approach (all resources contribute to mission)
  • Decision-making power shifted from Board to staff team who are closer to the work
  • Focus on systems thinking and racial justice lens
  • Preference for core, unrestricted funding over project-specific grants

Recent Grant Recipients (2025)

Tudor's first post-transformation funding round supported 18 organizations including:

  • Birthrights
  • Black Feminist Fund
  • CIVIC SQUARE
  • Coffee Afrik
  • Friends, Families & Travellers
  • Good Ancestor Movement
  • Hood Futures Studio Project
  • Tallawah
  • Rekindle School
  • Runnymede Trust
  • The Ubele Initiative
  • Decolonising Economics
  • Land In Our Names
  • Material Cultures
  • People Dem Collective
  • Sistren Legal Collective
  • Tripod Training
  • Ubuntu Women Shelter

Language and Terminology

Tudor uses language centered on:

  • Racial justice
  • Systems change
  • Root causes of inequity
  • Resourcing power within communities
  • Authentically uplifting communities
  • Total asset approach
  • Thriving for everyone

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  1. Invitation-only model: Organizations cannot apply directly. Tudor proactively identifies potential partners through networks and research, focusing on racial justice work.
  1. Fundamental transformation: Tudor has completely reimagined its approach through an anti-racist lens, moving from supporting “people at the margins” broadly to specifically advancing racial justice as the foundation for all equity work.
  1. Systems thinking approach: Tudor looks for organizations that understand and address root causes of systemic inequity, not just symptoms, with potential for wider systemic change.
  1. Long-term partnership model: Tudor now offers significantly larger grants (up to 6 years) to fewer organizations, focusing on depth of relationship rather than breadth.
  1. Core funding priority: Tudor strongly prefers providing unrestricted core funding to enable organizational health and strength rather than project-specific grants.
  1. Power redistribution: Tudor values organizations led by and accountable to the communities they serve, with authentic understanding of challenges and solutions.
  1. Total asset approach: Beyond grant-making, Tudor considers how all their resources (people, culture, relationships, investments) contribute to their racial justice mission.
  1. Relationship-based: For those who receive invitations, expect in-depth conversations and partnership approach rather than transactional grant-making.

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References

  1. Tudor Trust Official Website - Homepage and Strategy Pages. www.tudortrust.org.uk
  1. Tudor Trust “What We Do” page. www.tudortrust.org.uk/what-we-do
  1. Tudor Trust “Our Funding” page - Invitation-only status. www.tudortrust.org.uk/our-funding
  1. Tudor Trust “Who We Are” - Leadership and governance. www.tudortrust.org.uk/who-we-are
  1. Tudor Trust “Our Trustees” page. www.tudortrust.org.uk/who-we-are/our-trustees
  1. “Looking forward: An update from Director Raji Hunjan” - Tudor Trust News. www.tudortrust.org.uk/news/looking-forward-an-update-from-director-raji-hunjan
  1. “A message from the trustees of the Tudor Trust” - Tudor Trust News. tudortrust.org.uk/news/a-message-from-the-trustees-of-the-tudor-trust
  1. “How we made our first set of grants by being the change we seek” - Tudor Trust News. www.tudortrust.org.uk/news/being-the-change-we-seek
  1. “Applying racial justice to systems thinking” - Tudor Trust Blog by Raji Hunjan, CEO. www.tudortrust.org.uk/blog/applying-racial-justice-to-systems-thinking
  1. “The Tudor Trust Announces First Round of Grants After Major Transformation” - Press Release, 3 April 2025. tudor-trust.files.svdcdn.com/production/files/Tudor-Trust-Change-We-Seek-Press-Release-immediate-release-3-April-2025-Copy.pdf
  1. “Tudor Trust switches to invite-only grantmaking after major restructure” - Civil Society News. www.civilsociety.co.uk/news/tudor-trust-switches-to-invite-only-grantmaking-after-major-restructure.html
  1. The Tudor Trust Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023. tudor-trust.files.svdcdn.com/production/files/Tudor-Annual-Report-and-Accounts-2022-2023.pdf
  1. 360Giving GrantNav - The Tudor Trust grants data. grantnav.threesixtygiving.org/org/GB-CHC-1105580
  1. Charity Commission - THE TUDOR TRUST (1105580). register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-details/?regId=1105580
  1. The Tudor Trust - Get Grants database profile. www.getgrants.org.uk/tudor-trust/