What your organisation needs to apply

There are a few basic things your organisation will need in place, before you can apply to us for National Lottery funding. These include:

• A governing document, such as a constitution – This sets out the name and purpose of your organisation. It should also cover how it will work. So, things like how people join, how your committee will work, and when you’ll have meetings. Branches of larger organisations need their own governing document. The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) has advice on writing a constitution. Similarly, GOV.UK provides information on how to write your charity's governing document.
• A committee or board with at least two unrelated members – By unrelated we mean people who aren’t family members, such as siblings, parents and children, married couples or civil partners or people living at the same address. Some programmes require three members, so check when you apply.
• A bank account in your organisation’s name – This needs to be as written on your constitution or governing document. You’ll also need to make sure there are at least two unrelated people named on the account who manage money transfers.
• Yearly financial accounts – We want to know the date your accounts wrap up each year and how much income you have. If you don’t have yearly accounts, as you’re a new organisation (less than 15 months old), we’ll still look at your application.

Help to set up your organisation

There’s lots of help and advice available to set up a charitable organisation:

• For organisations in England and Wales: Visit the ‘Setting up a charity’ section of the NCVO KnowHow website.
• For organisations in Scotland: Visit the ‘Setting up a charity’ section of the SCVO website. It also includes model governing documents that you can use as a starting point for your own group.
• For organisations in Northern Ireland: Visit the ‘Setting up a charitable company’ section of the NICVA website.