Charity Applications FAQs

Looking to apply for our Global’s Make Some Noise funding? Here’s a selection of frequently asked questions to help with any queries you may have.

This year we expect to invite 80 - 90 charities to apply after our Expression of Interest has closed.

We will be able to select approximately 40 charities for grant funding from each application round.

You will hear from us no later than 3 weeks after the Expression of Interest closes to let you know if we can invite you to apply this year.

If you are invited to the Application stage, you can apply for maximum of £70,000 for up to 24 months of delivery. We do not encourage requests below £24,000 but please note, Global's Make Some Noise is not able to fund more than 40% of your annual income so please take this into account when calculating your budget. If your charity income means you cannot apply for the suggested grant funding amount, this is not a problem – if you are invited to apply, we will assess the maximum amount you can apply for with you.

If you have been invited to apply and submit an application, your charity will be assessed and discussed at one of our grant panels in the winter. You may be contacted to discuss your application further or if any additional information is required by the Grants Team. This year, we expect all charities to be informed of the outcome of their application by the end of March 2026. We will always update you on the progress and let you know if this timeline changes.

We provide feedback for any charity who has submitted an application to us in Stage 2. We are unable to provide comprehensive feedback to charities not invited to apply due to the volume of Expressions of Interest we receive in our programme.

You can submit another Expression of Interest the next time our application process opens. We would encourage you to think about any feedback you have received if you were invited to Stage 2 of our applications previously.

New funding for charities will be available from 1st April 2026. If you are invited to apply after submitting your Expression of Interest, you will need to apply for funds delivering a project starting on or after April 2026. We have been raising funds for successful charities throughout 2025, with our main activity happening during our appeal in October 2025.

As the official charity of Global, the Media and Entertainment Group, we tap into the power of Global’s radio brand listeners, including Capital, Heart, Classic FM, Smooth, LBC, Radio X, Capital XTRA and Gold. We raise funds through the amazing generosity of the public in our annual appeal, and through other fundraising initiatives with our fantastic partners. Funds are then granted to charities at the end of the financial year.

Please check the eligibility criteria on our website, at makesomenoise.com/charity.

Global’s Make Some Noise provides restricted grants for designated areas of work. If you are invited to apply, you will be asked to provide a budget break down how you plan to spend your grant. We call this a ‘project’, however there are many different things you can apply for. Please visit our makesomenoise.com/charity page for more details. If you are successful in your application, you will be asked to sign a Funding Agreement which specifies that our grant funds are treated as restricted.

We recently amended our criteria on accepting applications from charities that we have previously given a grant. This year, we welcome applications from charities we have previously supported, provided that the funding ended at least five years before this funding round (i.e. projects that concluded in 2021 or earlier, as this funding begins in April 2026).

Yes, all the questions have word limits which are clearly marked on the form.

Your charity must have an annual income of between £30,000 – £1 million on their latest, published accounts to be eligiblefor a grant.

CIOs are eligible for a Make Some Noise grant, if they meet the rest of the stated criteria. If your charity has recently changed name or structure, please flag this on your Expression of Interest.

We fund projects that do not promote religion and are open to the public. For transparency, it may be worth addressing the role faith plays within your charity in your EOI.

We can fund charities that work within hospitals or directly with patients, delivering services and activities that fall outside the scope of NHS provision. For example, we currently fund a project providing music therapy for children in hospital. The project must be planned and delivered by the charity, NOT the NHS.

We can fund charities that work within schools or directly with children, delivering services and activities that fall outside the scope of school. The project must be planned and delivered by the charity, NOT a school.

A networked organisation is a charity that operates with a central “parent” or national body, alongside multiple affiliated or franchise charities across the UK.

Yes, charities that received funding during Small Charity Week are eligible for this grant cycle.

To meet our criteria, the project must provide regular interactions with beneficiaries: a frontline service with multiple touchpoints for those whom it supports. We do not fund fundraising, smaller grants for individuals, one off events or things that are for general consumption such as pamphlets or social media posts.

Yes, we will fund a project that is also being financially supported by another funder. For transparency, it is worth addressing how your project will be funded in your EOI if it is by multiple funders.

You can apply for any project(s) that meet our criteria. All projects will be scored on the contents of their EOI.

We support charities with beneficiaries from all ages, from babies to the elderly.

We fund small charities across all regions of the UK, supporting multiple causes.

Due to the volume of EOIs we receive, we are unable to provide feedback to unsuccessful charities. If you have previously been unsuccessful, consider checking that you have followed the guidance on the EOI and taken into account how the responses are scored in your answer.

We recently amended our criteria on accepting applications from charities that have previously received grant funding from us. This year, we welcome applications from charities we have previously supported, provided that the funding ended at least five years before this funding round (i.e. projects that concluded in 2021 or earlier, as this funding begins in April 2026).

We can fund salaries for roles that are part of the project and are providing direct delivery to beneficiaries.

Projects must meet the criteria, including providing direct delivery to beneficiaries. Consider if your capital project meets this criterion before applying and explain what outcomes you expect for your beneficiaries in your EOI.

Storytelling is a key part of how we raise awareness and raise donations. However, we understand that not all charities are able to share case studies, this is not included in the EOI scoring and will not impact your charity’s success.