Cambridge Resettlement Community Grants 2026: Up to £30,000 for Refugee and Asylum-Seeker Support Projects

Cambridge Resettlement Community Grants 2026: Up to £30,000 for Refugee and Asylum-Seeker Support Projects

Cambridge City Council’s Resettlement Community Grant supports practical, local projects for people displaced by war, conflict and persecution. The fund has two routes. Tier 1 offers up to £5,000 for a shorter project or one-off event and remains open until the money is exhausted. Tier 2 offers £5,001 to £30,000 for a longer project expected to last between six and 24 months. The current Tier 2 application window closes at 10:00am on 1 September 2026.

This is a place-based grant. It is not a general refugee-support fund that can be delivered anywhere in the United Kingdom. Activities must benefit eligible people connected to Cambridge or, for some groups, South Cambridgeshire. The council names Ukraine visa holders living in Cambridge, residents on the Afghan Resettlement Programme or UK Resettlement Scheme, other refugees supported by its resettlement team, and Cambridge residents waiting for a decision on an asylum application. A project can also include other Cambridge residents as direct beneficiaries when its main focus is integration and community cohesion.

The opportunity is a good fit for a local charity, constituted community group, community interest company, faith group, resident-led partnership or established organisation that can show a clear connection to the people it wants to serve. Tier 2 is the more substantial route, but it also has a 5% match-funding requirement and a detailed document checklist. Applicants should choose the tier based on the actual scale and readiness of the project rather than treating Tier 2 as simply a larger version of a small event grant.

Key details

The council’s grant page is the controlling source for the live dates and requirements. Check it again immediately before submitting because the Tier 1 fund can close when its budget is exhausted and the council may request additional information during assessment.

What the grant can support

Every proposal must fit at least one of five priorities. The first is welcoming and resettlement, which covers support and advice for people who have recently arrived in Cambridge. This could suit an organisation helping new arrivals understand local services, navigate practical systems, or find trusted community connections. The proposal should explain the actual gap being addressed rather than describing resettlement support in broad terms.

The second is integration and community cohesion. The council is interested in work that helps people understand different customs and cultures, builds relationships across groups, celebrates diversity, and strengthens a sense of belonging. This priority can include other city residents as direct participants, but the application still needs to show how refugees, asylum seekers or resettled residents benefit.

The third is skills development. Eligible examples include English-language learning, volunteering, employment and entrepreneurship support, and help people pursue career paths or professions disrupted by displacement. A credible skills project should identify the skill, the learner group, the delivery method and the practical change expected by the end of the funded period.

The fourth is access to specialist and targeted support. The council gives women-only activities and support for people who have experienced trauma as examples. This is a useful route for a group addressing a barrier that general community provision cannot handle well. Explain why the service needs to be targeted, how participants will be referred or reached, and what safeguarding or specialist boundaries apply.

The fifth is wellbeing. Arts and cultural work, community crafts, cooking and food, gardening, connection with nature, sport and other activities that create opportunities for joy can fit this priority. The strongest applications will connect the activity to the needs of the eligible participants rather than presenting a generic programme with a refugee label attached.

Who can apply

Individuals cannot apply directly. The council requires an eligible organisation or partnership to submit the application. For Tier 1, possible applicants include community groups, small groups of residents, faith groups and constituted not-for-profit organisations such as registered charities, companies limited by guarantee, unincorporated associations, clubs, community interest companies and charitable incorporated organisations. A partnership between local residents and an eligible group that includes refugees or asylum seekers may also apply, but the eligible group must be the lead applicant.

Tier 2 is aimed at an established group with a good track record of working with refugees and asylum seekers, or an organisation with a meaningful connection to refugees and asylum seekers living in the local area. A group without that connection can still be eligible if it submits an outreach plan explaining how it will build access and trust. That distinction matters: a strong general-purpose organisation should not assume that its overall reputation substitutes for a credible route to the intended participants.

The organisation must be able to manage public money. The council expects proper financial records, a governing document, a dual-controlled bank account in the organisation’s name, appropriate employment and volunteer practices, and compliance with applicable legal and regulatory responsibilities. Health and safety, safeguarding where relevant, data protection, environmental, and equality and diversity arrangements also need to be in place or actively being established before funding is awarded.

For Tier 2, at least 5% of the total project cost must come from another source. The council says this may include participant contributions, other grants or donations, but not in-kind contributions or the organisation’s reserves. Work out this contribution early and identify the source in the budget. A request for £30,000 therefore needs a total project budget that is larger than £30,000 and a realistic cash contribution that is not merely a promise to absorb the gap internally.

Choosing between Tier 1 and Tier 2

Tier 1 is designed for a shorter project or a one-off event. It can fund direct delivery costs and may cover a realistic, proportionate share of organisational overheads. An organisation can hold only one Tier 1 grant at a time and cannot submit another Tier 1 request until its previous project has finished. Groups can apply only once within any three-month period, whether or not the earlier application was successful.

Tier 2 is for a project lasting six to 24 months, with awards from £5,001 to £30,000. It is a better fit for a structured course, recurring community programme, multi-stage wellbeing project, or sustained support offer with a clear beginning, delivery period and end point. It is not automatically better for a small group: the larger route creates more work around match funding, documentation, monitoring and delivery capacity.

Use Tier 1 when the need is narrow and the result can be demonstrated through a compact activity. Use Tier 2 when the issue requires continuity, repeated contact or a longer pathway for participants. In either case, make the requested amount follow the workplan. A budget that reaches the maximum without explaining why the maximum is necessary can weaken confidence in the proposal.

How to apply

Applications are submitted through the Cambridge City Council grants portal. Tier 2 applications can be made from 21 July 2026 until 10:00am on 1 September 2026. The council says it will normally decide within 10 weeks of receiving a complete application, provided it does not need more information. For Tier 1, the portal route is open from 13 October 2025 until the fund is exhausted, and the council gives a six-week decision timeframe.

Before opening the form, write a short project outline containing five parts: the eligible people to be reached, the local need, the activity, the delivery timetable and the intended change. Then map each part to one or more of the council’s priorities. This prevents the application from becoming a general organisational description that never clearly answers what the grant will pay for.

Partnership applications are welcome. If partners are involved, identify the lead organisation, each partner’s contribution, how decisions will be made and how the arrangement will continue after the grant. If successful, a simple partnership agreement must state who is accountable for the grant, whose insurance covers the activity and whose accounts receive or pass through the funds.

Documents and evidence to prepare

Tier 2 applicants must upload a bank statement for the account into which the grant would be paid, dated within the previous three months. They also need their latest accounts, an organisational budget or current management accounts, governing documents, insurance certificates, and a project risk assessment. The policy documents listed by the council are complaints, data protection, environmental impact, equality and diversity, health and safety, and safeguarding.

Treat this list as part of the assessment, not as administration to handle at the last minute. Check that names and addresses match across the bank statement, accounts and application. Confirm that the bank account has two signatories and is held with an institution protected through the relevant financial safeguards. If a policy is being updated, document who owns the action and when it will be complete; do not upload a document that does not reflect the way the project will actually operate.

The project case also needs evidence of community need. This might include local service data, anonymised referral patterns, participant consultation, waiting-list information, evidence from partner organisations, or carefully gathered lived-experience input. The point is not to collect impressive statistics for their own sake. Evidence should show who is missing out, why the gap exists in Cambridge, and why the proposed activity is a reasonable response.

Building a stronger proposal

Start with access. The council’s target groups may face language barriers, unfamiliarity with services, trauma, disability, insecure housing, caring responsibilities or low trust. Explain where people already spend time, who they trust, how the project will reach them and what will make it easy to participate. A proposal that relies on people finding an unfamiliar venue and registering through a complicated process may be poorly matched to the problem it describes.

Make the delivery model concrete. State how often activities will happen, where they will take place, who will deliver them, how many people the project expects to reach, and what happens when a participant needs specialist help outside the project’s remit. If the activity involves children, vulnerable adults, trauma or personal data, connect the staffing and safeguarding arrangements to those risks.

Set measurable but proportionate outcomes. The council asks partnership applicants to explain how they will measure impact and success, and the same discipline helps every applicant. Choose a small number of indicators tied to the priority: attendance and repeat participation, improved confidence using local services, progression into volunteering or training, new cross-community relationships, or participant-reported wellbeing. Avoid promising changes that a small grant cannot plausibly cause.

For Tier 2, show why a six-to-24-month project is necessary. A timeline should distinguish preparation, outreach, delivery, review and closeout. The budget should show direct costs, staffing or facilitator time, venue and access costs, participant support, materials, evaluation and any allowable overheads. Explain the 5% match contribution and identify whether it is confirmed or pending. If the match is another grant, make sure the two funders permit the proposed combination.

Common mistakes to avoid

The most serious mistake is applying as an individual or proposing activity outside the council’s geographical and beneficiary rules. The fund is not for a national programme, a private business, or a general community project with no clear benefit to eligible displaced people.

Another mistake is confusing integration with political campaigning. Funded activity must be politically neutral. It cannot be used for lobbying, campaigning for elected office or influencing legislation. A project can teach people how local democracy works or help them participate in community life, but it must not use the grant to promote a party, candidate or political position.

Do not rely on in-kind time or organisational reserves to satisfy the Tier 2 match requirement. The council expressly excludes both. Do not submit a budget without the required cash contribution, and do not make an unsupported claim that a partner will provide funds unless that arrangement is documented.

Finally, avoid treating the document checklist as optional. Missing insurance, safeguarding, financial or governance information can delay assessment or make it impossible for the council to confirm that the organisation can safely deliver the work. Submit early enough to respond to a request for clarification before the deadline.

Frequently asked questions

Can an individual apply?

No. An eligible organisation or partnership must apply. If you have an idea but are not part of a group, Cambridge City Council says to contact it to discuss how you might proceed.

Can a project take place outside Cambridge?

The grant is place-based. Eligible beneficiaries include people connected to Cambridge and, for specified resettlement programmes, South Cambridgeshire residents. Read the council’s current guidance carefully if delivery will cross the city boundary.

Can a project include people who are not refugees or asylum seekers?

Yes, but the funded activity must benefit one or more of the council’s named groups. Other city residents can be direct beneficiaries when the project meets the integration and community cohesion priority.

What is the Tier 2 deadline?

The Tier 2 application window closes at 10:00am on 1 September 2026. The council does not accept a late submission through the ordinary application route, so allow time for uploading documents and resolving portal problems.

How much match funding is required?

At least 5% of the total project costs must come from another source. Participant contributions, other grants and donations may count; in-kind contributions and organisational reserves do not.

Where can applicants ask questions?

Cambridge City Council lists [email protected] and telephone 01223 457875 as contact details. Use the official page and grants portal for the current application route and any updated instructions.

Official links and next steps

Start with the Cambridge City Council Resettlement Community Grants page. It contains the two-tier rules, priorities, eligibility conditions, document list and links to the Cambridge grants portal. Before submitting, confirm that your project reaches an eligible group, select the tier that matches the delivery period, prepare the required governance and financial documents, and verify the 1 September 2026 Tier 2 cutoff on the council page.

If your project is small and time-limited, Tier 1 may be the more realistic route and remains open only while funding is available. If you are seeking Tier 2, secure the 5% cash match, agree partner responsibilities and prepare the evidence of local need before completing the form. The strongest application will make it easy for the council to see who benefits, why the activity is needed in Cambridge, how the work will be delivered safely, and what the requested grant will change.