Funding in Scotland

Glasgow Community Food Network, Scotland
  1. Funding
  2. Funding in Scotland

The National Lottery Community Fund is the largest community funder in the UK. Our funding is raised by National Lottery players. Each year we give out millions of pounds to community groups and charitable projects across Scotland.

Talk to us before you apply

We have colleagues who cover each part of Scotland. They'll chat with you about your idea. Then they’ll give you some advice about applying.

You can call 0300 123 7110 or email advicescotland@tnlcommunityfund.org.uk.

Responding to changes in employer's National Insurance costs

From April 2025 there will be changes in employers National Insurance costs. Please ensure you include any increases in your project budget when applying for funding.

If you are already funded and have raised costs for April 25 and beyond, talk to your Funding Officer about adjusting your budget.

We opened new funds on 27 November 2024

You can now apply to our:

They’ll support communities to:

  • come together
  • be environmentally sustainable
  • help children and young people thrive
  • enable people to live healthier lives.

You can find out more in the open funding section.

These four aims are part of our UK-wide strategy until 2030.

How to keep up to date

To be the first to know about our funding you can:

We also share stories about projects we fund, and hints and tips for applying.

Open funding

These funds are all open for applications. There’s no deadlines, so you can apply at any time.

National Lottery Awards for All Scotland

£300 to £20,000

  • Funds a wide range of community, sports and arts projects.
  • Smaller amounts of funding.
  • Voluntary or community organisations and public sector organisations can apply.
  • For projects that will run for 2 years or less.

Community Action

£20,001 to £250,000

  • For projects bringing communities together around activities that matter to them.
  • We'll fund projects that:
    • build positive relationships
    • support people’s health or wellbeing
    • help people improve their access and connection to nature
    • make a positive difference to the environment.
  • Projects should support people experiencing poverty, disadvantage or discrimination
  • Voluntary or community organisations that are led by their community can apply
  • We can fund projects for up to 5 years.

Fairer Life Chances

£20,001 to £500,000

  • We'll fund projects that:
    • support children, young people and families to thrive, or
    • help people have better relationships, connections, and physical or mental health.
  • Projects should support people experiencing poverty, disadvantage or discrimination.
  • Voluntary or community organisations and public sector organisations can apply.
  • We can fund projects for up to 5 years.

Young Start

£20,001 to £100,000

  • Funds projects for children and young people age 8 to 24. To help them become more confident, so they can realise their own potential.
  • Only voluntary or community organisations can apply.
  • For projects that will run for 3 years or less.

Scottish Land Fund

£5,000 to £1,000,000

  • Helps communities become more resilient by owning and managing land and buildings. Or land assets, like timber or minerals.
  • Open to both urban and rural communities.
  • Voluntary or community organisations and public sector organisations can apply. They must be:
    • community led
    • community controlled
    • defined by a geographic area.

We work with Highlands and Islands Enterprise to run this fund. We run it on behalf of the Scottish Government.

Funding for work across the UK

We also offer larger funding for projects that work across the UK. Or that could have an impact in more than one UK country.