Community Connections Grant

The Community Connections Grant will give up to £5,000 of funding to community groups for them to develop meaningful projects addressing needs or stories relevant to their community, with the support of an arts, humanities and social sciences researcher.

This grant:

Values all voices and experiences
Allows communities to define their own needs and priorities
Puts funding directly into communities’ hands
Brings communities and universities closer together

In this first round of Community Connections grants we are seeking applications from community groups and individuals embedded in communities in coastal regions across the UK. Community groups and individuals embedded in communities that are not coastal will not be eligible for this round, but future rounds will have different eligibility criteria.

What type of projects will get funding?

We’re looking for a range of different ideas. This funding might support groups to do a variety of activities, such as

Curating an exhibition
Co-ordinating an oral history project
Developing a creative output
Mapping local sites
Filming cultural activities
Creating a resource relevant to your community
Creating local change

Successful community groups will be matched with an arts, humanities or social sciences researcher who can support them to achieve their project idea.

Eligibility

All applications must have a lead applicant, who can be from a specific community group, or an individual embedded within a community. For this round of funding, we are looking for applicants from communities in the UK’s coastal regions. More information on group eligibility can be found in our application guidance below.

Help to apply

Our Public Engagement Officers can support applicants with questions about the application process or guidance. Applicants can email cpep@sas.ac.uk with questions or to book in a 10-minute call on Teams, Zoom or phone.

An information webinar will be held on 2 November 2026, 1.30pm-2.30pm.

We can also supply a large-print version of the application form.

Book onto application webinar

Key documents

Application guidance

Budget template

Application form (Word document)

Please note: Applications can be prepared in advance using the Word document, but final applications must be submitted through Microsoft Forms.

Key dates

Call for applications	Wednesday 7 October 2026
Information webinar	2 November 2026, 1.30 pm – 2.30 pm
Application Deadline	1 December 2026
Notification of outcomes	Mid-January 2027
Grant starts	From March 2027
Grant ends	Within 12 months of the project start date

Get to Know Researchers in Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

In this film series, we’re asking researchers from different arts, humanities and social sciences disciplines to talk about the various activities they do as researchers, and what skills they have developed through doing their research.

Grant pilots

The Community Connections grant has been piloted with community groups, whose feedback has helped to shape the application form and guidance documents. The pilot groups include Wrecsam Rhinos, an inclusive rugby club based in Wrecsam, Wales, and Women4Change, a community group in Leicester. They were supported in their projects by researchers from Cardiff Metropolitan University and UCL.

The Rhinos have been working on designing a new kit that reflects what the club has meant to them, and a new recruitment film that will feature personal stories of team-members and friends.

Women4Change have been campaigning to stop the closure of St Matthew’s Centre, the venue they have been using for decades as a community space. They have been working with creative practitioner Rehneesa Inez to develop artwork for an exhibition representing their history at the Centre.

Photo credit: Lorna Powell