Watch our Future Communities Fund Round 2 webinar!

Unfortunately, we were unable to run our webinar as planned because of the disruption to Co-op caused by the recent cyber-attack.

We’ve recorded our presentation and are answering any questions you have via this email address – applyfoundation@coop.co.uk

You can also hear from Suranne and Ladajah, who are part of a group of young people that are making decisions on the fund, we hope you’ll find their insights as valuable as we do!

About our Future Communities Fund Round 2 

The second round of our Future Communities Fund focuses on helping those who have been through the justice system to re-engage with their communities. The Fund opens for applications opens in mid-May, and closes at midday, Thursday 12 June 2025.

We’re looking to fund approximately ten organisations through this £1.75m programme round. Grants will be up to a total of £150,000 over five years and will be awarded on an unrestricted basis. As with the first round of our Future Communities Fund we hope to engage a learning partner to support us and our funded partners for the duration of the programme. We have included budget for this within the £1.75m. 

A youth-led approach 

This funding has been set up with the support of our Future Communities Collective. With support from HUDL youth development agency and Co-op Foundation’s team, this diverse group of young people have co-designed the programme and have responsibility to make funding decisions for the first stage of applications to the fund. Our collective will be involved throughout the decision making process and beyond. 

Our work also would not have been possible without the participation of young people from Leaders Unlocked, who have direct experience of the justice system and have also led and shaped the development of this fund.  

Eligibility criteria  

As part of this round, we’re looking to fund organisations which:   

• Have a significant focus on supporting justice-experienced young people aged 10-25 to re-engage with their community 
• Have an annual income of £250,000 or less 
• Are not-for-profit organisations, who operate exclusively in the United Kingdom 
• Have two or more unrelated directors or trustees on the Board 

Fund criteria 

In order to be successful, organisations should be able to demonstrate that they: 

• Support young people to navigate the social stigma which can be associated for those with experience of the justice system 
• Have strong, existing relationships with referral agencies to ensure a smooth transition out of the justice system 
• Have experience of developing routes for young people transitioning from the justice system into training and employment  
• Have experience of supporting young people to develop skills that help them feel empowered to make positive changes in their lives 
• Value lived experience and have justice experienced young people involved in their governance and/or service delivery  
• Have experience of building flexible, consistent, positive relationships with young people