THE MOTABILITY FOUNDATION GRANT PROGRAMMES
Motability has recently announced that it is accepting Stage 1 applications to 6 grant programmes for initiatives across the UK that support, research and innovate in order that all disabled people can make the journeys they choose.
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o Application deadline: TUESDAY 8th OCTOBER 2024 for Stage 1 applications.
o Funder: The Motability Foundation (founded 1988. Charity number 299745. Total charitable expenditure for the year ended 31 March 2023: £129,022,000).
o Who can apply: UK registered charities and Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIOs), Community Interest Companies (CICs), Community Benefit Societies, charitable companies and companies limited by guarantee. Please note that applying organisations must (a) have been established for at least 3 years; (b) have had an annual income of at least £150,000 per annum over the past 3 years, and (c) hold reserves of between three and twelve months of operating costs.
o Key words: Disability, Travel. Community Transport, Accessible Transport, Wheelchairs, Transport-related Research, Active Travel Equipment and Journeys, Travel Training Schemes, Reducing Barriers to Driving, United Kingdom.
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The Motability Foundation funds, supports, researches and innovates to help all disabled people make the journeys they choose by:
o Overseeing the Motability Scheme and provide grants to help people use it, providing access to transport to hundreds of thousands of people a year.
o Awarding grants to other charities and organisations who provide different types of transport, or work towards making transport accessible, and
o Carrying out ongoing research, in partnership with disabled people and key stakeholders in the industry, to inspire innovations that continue to champion accessible transport for all.
Motability currently has the following 6 grant programmes open to application for charities and organisations (if you click on the heading it should take you to full details of the respective grant scheme):
1. Community Transport – to help charities and organisations to make an immediate impact for disabled people, by awarding funding to develop, expand and improve community transport options.
2. Wheelchair Sector – supporting charities and organisations to make an immediate impact for disabled people, by awarding funding to improve and expand their access to good quality affordable wheelchairs.
3. Research – helping charities and organisations to develop, expand and improve transport related research for disabled people, and produce data and findings that can be freely accessed by all.
4. Active Travel – helping charities and organisations to improve and expand access to quality and affordable active travel equipment and journeys.
5. Travelling with Confidence – helping small and large charities, as well as travel providers, to make an immediate impact for disabled people by providing travel training schemes.
6. Reducing Barriers to Driving – enabling charities and organisations to improve and expand private transport options for disabled people and their families beyond the Motability Scheme.
Grants of between £100,000 and £4 million are available over 1, 2 or 3 years. Please note that the level of grant funding available may differ between the various programmes currently open to applications.
Funding is not available for:
o Activities unrelated to active transport for disabled people, including competitive or social sport.
o Building or construction work.
o Medical care or research.
o NHS Trusts, Health Providers, NHS services or a statutory agencies.
o Organisations working solely outside the UK.
o Overseas travel.
o Promotion of religious or political views.
o Retrospective costs.
o Social investment, or
o Sponsorship of any individual, group or company.
Organisations interested in applying for funding through the above programmes should submit their Stage One application by Tuesday 8th October 2024.
Successful Stage 1 applicants will be invited to complete a Stage 2 Full Application.
Further information, guidance and an online application form is available on the Foundation’s website.