A NEW £2 million grant fund has been launched for non-profit organisations led by Black communities in England and Wales who support children and young people.

The Phoenix Way, in partnership with the Youth Endowment Fund (YEF), have lunched this round of funding, where there are grants for project funding of up to £50,000 available per organisation.

The partnership will support non-profit groups, organisations or charities that work with participants and communities that are primarily 18 or under and are at high risk of becoming involved in violence.

The organisations must be led by representatives of Black and racially minoritised communities and work within Black and racially minoritised communities.

Yvonne Field OBE, CEO and Founder of the Ubele Initiative and convening partner of the Phoenix Way, said: “I am pleased that we are using a participatory approach as our communities are often excluded from grant making and are unable to influence the design and/or decision-making processes. 

“The significant response that we have received to these targeted funding rounds demonstrates that Black and racially minoritised communities are not actually hard to reach at all. We have to speak to these communities directly and involve them in decision-making.” 

Also, the charities eligible must have annual operating budgets of up to £150,000 per year and be located and work in England and/or Wales.

The YEF is a charity that aims to prevent children and young people becoming involved in violence.

The charity was established in 2019 with a ten-year £200m endowment from the Home Office.

Jon Yates, Executive Director at the Youth Endowment Fund, said: “The YEF is investing £10 million in The Phoenix Way, as part of our commitment to ensure our funding is accessible to organisations led by – and working for – people from Black, Asian and other minority backgrounds. 

“The Emergency round – launched earlier this year – marked the first step of our partnership. With this latest funding round, we aim to extend our support to even more grassroots groups working to help children live a life free from violence.”

This latest round of funding  follows The Phoenix Way’s Emergency Round of grant funding in May 2023 for Black and racially minoritised organisations in England working with children and young people.

The emergency round offered £20,000 of unrestricted funding to help groups survive the cost-of-living crisis.

A lucky 50 groups successfully secured support through an innovative participatory grant-making process.

This funding round received a massive 519 applications. 
The Phoenix Fund was launched in 2020 in order to put racial justice at the heart of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The fund was devised and led by Black and racially minoritised community group leaders from across England and established with the support of The National Lottery Community Fund and Global Fund for Children.  

The initial Phoenix Fund round (in 2020) saw £2.4 million distributed (£0.4 million in infrastructure support and £2 million in grants to 184 community groups) across all regions of England. More than 1,400 applications were received, demonstrating the high level of demand for targeted funding opportunities.  

More information about the fund, eligibility criteria and information about how to apply can be found at: https://www.ubele.org/our-work/the-phoenix-way