Please note from November 2026 the eligibility and exclusions have been updated. Please read through these before completing your application as your eligibility may have changed.
General Eligibility
- applications must be on behalf of a UK Charity, Not-For-Profit, or Exempt organisation
- applications must be for a specific project and not for a general appeal, or endowment fund
- applicants must be based in the UK
- bursaries and other support fees will normally be paid to the training organisation
General Exclusions
The Trust is now receiving many more applications than we are able to fund. For this reason, we are not able to accept applications in the following cases:
- no applications which exceed our grant limit of £5,000 for Music and £7,500 for Heritage & Crafts
- no retrospective grants – if your project start date is prior to the trustees meeting, it will not be considered
- no general appeals or endowment funds
- save in exceptional circumstances, we cannot consider your application unless you have a minimum of 2 years of accounts
- we cannot accept applications in consecutive years. If you have previously received a grant from us, you will need to take a one-year break from the end of your funding before re-applying. Please see FAQs for more information
- we do not accept applications from individuals, only from organisations
- we are not currently awarding multi-year grants except under exceptional circumstances
Music Scheme specific eligibility and exclusions
Applications are considered under the following headings:
1. Composition and Contemporary Music: the creation, commissioning and performance of new and contemporary music, from single commissions to season-length programmes of new work. In the case of commission applications, the lead composer must be named.
2. Bursaries for Courses and Summer Schools: Funds bursary places for UK-based students and young musicians to attend residential or vacation courses, summer schools and ensemble programmes they could not otherwise afford.
3. Music Therapy / Special Needs: music therapy and interactive music-making aiming to support the wellbeing of children and adults with disabilities, additional needs or health conditions or in rehabilitation settings such as prisons.
4. Academic Research / Projects: research into, or scholarly/academic projects relating to, music and its impact — for example, evaluation of music’s therapeutic, educational or social outcomes.
5. Youth Orchestras: youth orchestras and ensembles that offer programmes increasing access and supporting progression and advanced opportunities for young players.
6. Performance Projects: live performance projects — concerts, tours, festivals and one-off productions.
7. Educational Projects (excluding individual mainstream primary and secondary schools): music education, outreach and professional-development projects delivered by music organisations, hubs, conservatoires and other bodies working across or alongside schools, rather than applications from a single mainstream primary or secondary school acting alone.
The Music scheme does not support:
- operating costs – although a reasonable management fee may be included for project administration
- competitions
- capital projects
- projects which mainly involve popular music, and/or don’t strongly feature classical music
How can I increase my chances of receiving a grant?
We are currently receiving over double the number of applications we did 3 years ago, meaning the success rate has dropped from about a 1 in 3 to a 1 in 6 chance. In this context, we suggest a few ways of improving your chances of success:
- Please provide information about additional sources of funding. The Trustees expect to see that you are making efforts to raise funds from elsewhere and appreciate organisations who have found, or are actively looking for, other sources of funding. We would not generally expect to be the sole funder of a project.
- Let us know what you would do if you only received a contribution towards your request. Could the project still go ahead?
- Please don’t wait until the final week to submit your application. Due to the high volume of applications which come in at the last minute, we need a full week before the deadline to reply to any queries you might have.
- We don’t have capacity to comment on full applications before you submit, nor can we comment on which of your projects are most likely to be funded.
- The Trust would like to see details of the professional musicians or practitioners who are involved in your activity or, if not yet known (e.g. a scheme for emerging young professionals), how they will be selected.
- If you are applying from a faith-based organisation, please show us how your proposed activity is open to all comers and what the community aspect is. We don’t generally fund projects focussed on one faith or denomination.
Please read our FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS on our Music page if you have any further questions before applying.
Download the Word version of our application questions here: APPLICATION QUESTIONS
To submit an application, please CLICK HERE.