New fund will inspire activity among children and young people and marginalised groups and communities
The London Marathon Charitable Trust (now the London Marathon Foundation) has announced a new fund that will be opening in October 2022. It is the first fund that will be open to applications under The Trust’s (now the Foundation’s) new strategy, which puts inspiring activity for children and young people and marginalised groups and communities at the heart of its work.
Through the Active Spaces Fund, community groups and organisations in London will be able to apply for funding to improve and activate spaces where children and young people and marginalised groups and communities can participate in sport and physical activity. It is hoped that up to £5 million will be made available through this fund over the next three years.
The Active Spaces Fund will be the first open fund since April 2020, when the financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic forced the charity to close its funding programmes. During the pandemic, the charity focused on supporting its existing funded organisations while working on a new strategy to inspire, encourage and champion participation and diversity in physical activity.
The new fund is an evolution from previous work that focused on funding facilities. While funding facilities will still be a core component of the Active Spaces Fund, a broader range of projects that will improve spaces and places so they can be used for physical activity will be able to apply for funding. Through this, the charity hopes to be able to offer greater flexibility to more organisations and support a wide range of projects that will inspire activity.
Catherine Anderson, Executive Director at The London Marathon Charitable Trust (now the London Marathon Foundation), said: “It’s fantastic to be in a position to fund new projects across the capital again. This continues to be an incredibly tough time for so many people, and we hope our Active Spaces Fund can offer more organisations the support they need to create much-needed spaces for activity.
“By focusing our funding on children and young people and marginalised groups and communities who need the most help to be active, we want to increase and diversify participation in physical activity, so that many more people can lead active and healthy lives – which has always been the mission of the founders of the London Marathon, and continues to be their legacy.”
The Active Spaces Fund will open to applications in October 2022.
Note: Updated in March 2023 with references to the London Marathon Foundation’s new name.