GUIDELINES FOR APPLYING FOR A GRANT
If you are considering applying for a grant from Trinity House Maritime Charity, these guidelines will help you to establish your eligibility and aim to help you ensure that your application meets our charitable objectives, enabling you to have the greatest chance of success. We have two grants programmes, our main one which is for national organisations with set application deadlines and our regional grants for smaller, local organisations, which is a rolling programme. The process for both is outlined below.
Our Charitable Objectives
The Trinity House Maritime Charity (THMC) is one of the UK’s largest-endowed maritime charities, committed to the education, safety, support and welfare of mariners and their dependants. We welcome applications from charities and organisations whose work aligns with our charitable objectives and who can demonstrate support of seafarers in the areas below:
a. Support, maintenance and provision of Alms Houses and Annuities;
b. Advancing the education and training of officers, cadets and seamen (inc. grants and bursaries);
c. Advancing the education of the public, including assisting schools and other institutions providing education;
d. Advancing public safety and the safety of shipping;
e. Relieving the need of mariners and former mariners of all ranks, and their families;
f. Publishing and disseminating information in any form relating to navigation, shipping and seamanship.
Our Main Grants Application Process
If you have not applied to us before, please contact Head of Charitable Giving Vikki Muir either on 0207 481 6903 or victoria.muir@trinityhouse.co.uk for an informal chat to introduce yourself, your organisation and your proposal.
If we feel that this fits within our charitable objectives, Vikki will discuss the application with you in more detail, including how it aligns with our charitable objectives, the type of programme or project you are delivering, the level of funding required, the impact you hope to achieve and how you collaborate with other organisations working in the same field.
All applications, whether or not you have applied to us before, must be submitted on the latest version of the application form. Individual proposals will not be accepted and you will be asked to resubmit. The form is available on request and further application guidelines will be sent with this.
The Decision Process
All grants are considered by our Management Committee in April and January. The next deadline is outlined below but you are welcome to submit at any time before this. When we have received your application, you will be informed of the Committee meeting date and you will be notified of the outcome as soon as possible after this. Trinity House Maritime Charity aligns its grant making with the MCG Funding Principles which can be found here.
The Trustees would not normally look to fund a service or project in its entirety but will consider a contribution for organisations that align closely with our charitable objectives. We do not support capital build projects or the purchase of boats. As part of the application, we would expect you to outline how the remaining funding would be found, either from external funders or from your reserves. We will also consider the sustainability of the activity applied for, taking into consideration the financial position of the applicant charity.
Main Grant Application Dates
We will next be considering grants at our January 2027 Committee. The deadline for applications is by 1700 on 18 December 2026.
Following a review of our support to waterborne and sail training organisations, applications from those working in this area will only be considered at the April Committee and should apply before the March Deadline.
Regional Grant Committees
THMC also has Regional Grants Committees which cover six regions throughout the country, Scotland and Northern Ireland, North, East, South East, South West and West. They award small grants to local charities and organisations who meet our charitable objectives. Applications are considered by each Committee individually. Please contact Vikki in the first instance who can put you in contact with the correct region. The Chair will then send you the application form and manage this process. This is a rolling programme and applications are considered until the allocation of funding is complete. This resets in April each year. Some of the organisations that they have supported can be found here.
Please contact Vikki Muir to discuss your application.