Bentley Advancing Life Chances Small Grants Programme

Introduction

Welcome to Bentley’s Advancing Life Chances Small Grants Programme.

Through our grants programme we will support charitable organisations that help communities in 19 locations across the UK. This localised approach has been selected to maximise the impact of the programme, allowing grants to improve outcomes for communities in multiple and intersecting ways and amplifying the impact in each area.

Please review our Bentley Advancing Life Chances Small Grants Policy and the further information on eligibility below, before considering applying.

We will work in partnership with the Charities Aid Foundation to deliver our financial giving programme, who ensure that all organisations we support are charitable and that we accurately record our social impact.

Grants must be spent within 12 months of award. Applications for the Bentley Advancing Life Chances Small Grants Programme will be considered on a quarterly basis.

In response to the challenging environment that smaller charities are operating in and reflecting Bentley’s aim to maximise the impact of its grants, the Advancing Life Chances Small Grants programme is restricted to organisations with an annual income of less than £1m.

By clicking on the link below you will be redirected to the online application form hosted by our partners, Charities Aid Foundation (CAF). Please note that we have an allocated budget for each funding round. This may mean a decision needs to be taken to close the application process before the stated date. This is to ensure that applicants have a reasonable chance of success. We therefore advise all potential applicants to apply at their earliest convenience before the deadline for each funding round. If a funding round has been closed due to demand, notice will be confirmed on the CAF application page. You can find out more about CAF here.

CAF enable us to deliver the Bentley Advancing Life Chances Small Grants programme. If you apply for this grants programme, you will be directed to CAF’s carefully selected service provider (Blackbaud) to enter the details of your grant application. Your data will only be used for the purposes of this programme. CAF will act as a data controller for the purposes of your data. Please refer to CAF’s privacy policy for more information on how your data will be used. CAF may get in touch with you directly to ask for your bank account details and any documents they need from you to complete due diligence checks. CAF will process your data to validate your organisation and will act as data controller for this information and any information they collect directly from you. More information is available on CAF’s Privacy Notice.

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Overview

Bentley’s Advancing Life Chances Small Grants Programme provides grants up to £500 to support charitable organisations working with vulnerable, disadvantaged or under-represented communities.

In response to the challenging environment that smaller charities are operating in and reflecting Bentley’s aim to maximise the impact of its grants, the Advancing Life Chances Small Grants programme is restricted to organisations with an annual income of less than £1m.

The programme is aimed at supporting communities in 19 locations across the UK. This localised approach has been selected to maximise the impact of the programme, allowing grants to improve outcomes for communities in multiple and intersecting ways and amplifying the impact in each area.

The locations selected are those where Bentley has a presence in the community. They are made up of 18 Bentley retailer partner locations across the UK and additionally our HQ and Manufacturing site in Crewe. To be eligible, organisations must be located within a 20-mile radius of the sites in the locations listed below. To be sure that you are eligible, you can find a full list of eligible postcodes here.

Location

Bentley Site / Retail Partners

Postcode

Crewe

Home of Bentley Motors (HQ & Manufacturing Site)

CW1 3PL

Belfast

Bentley Belfast

BT12 6LR

Reading

Bentley Berkshire

RG8 7AN

Birmingham

Bentley Birmingham

B24 9HF

Bristol

Bentley Bristol

BS10 7TT

Huntingdon

Bentley Cambridge

PE28 9RB

Edinburgh

Bentley Edinburgh

EH15 3HR

Chelmsford

Bentley Essex

CM2 6PN

Glasgow

Bentley Glasgow

ML3 0AY

Southampton

Bentley Hamphsire

SO43 7JF

Hatfield

Bentley Hatfield

AL10 9WN

Leeds

Bentley Leeds

LS12 6BY

Leicester

Bentley Leicester

LE7 1PF

Knutsford

Bentley Manchester

WA16 8GT

Newcastle Upon Tyne

Bentley Newcastle

NE28 9ND

Byfleet

Bentley Surrey

KT14 7JU

Pulborough

Bentley Sussex

RH20 1HR

Tunbridge Wells

Bentley Tunbridge Wells

TN2 3UY

London

Jack Barclay

W1J 6AE

In working to advance life chances, our priority is to support organisations working with vulnerable people, disadvantaged and under-represented communities. The programme’s areas of focus are below:

Access - Remove the barriers and improve access to services, education and employability.

Empowerment - Development of the life skills that enable people to be more self-confident, successful and thrive in life.

Quality of Life - Provide support to live a healthier life both physically and mentally.

Better Future - Safeguarding the environment, improving nature-deprived areas, drive improvement to “place” and boosting community spirit.

Full details of priorities and eligibility for grants can be found in our Bentley Advancing Life Chances Small Grants Policy.

Through the Bentley Advancing Life Chances Small Grants programme, we are keen to support organisations and communities within the vicinity of key locations for Bentley, where we have a local presence.

When to Apply

The Advancing Life Chances grants are decided on a quarterly basis. If you wish to apply for a grant you will need to do so before the corresponding date each quarter. We aim to make decisions within 3 weeks of the deadline, and applicants will be informed thereafter.

We do expect to receive a large amount of applications for grant funding, as such, unfortunately we will be unable to award all of them. However, even if your application is unsuccessful, please do feel free to review your application and re-apply next quarter.

Bentley Advancing Life Chances Small Grants Programme: Key Dates

Key Dates

Q1 2024

Q2 2024

Q3 2024

Q4 2024

Q1 2025

Application Window Opens

12 Jan 24

05 Apr 24

05 Jul 24

07 Oct 24

10 Jan 25

Programme Closes / Deadline for Applications

29 Mar 24

21 Jun 24

20 Sep 24

20 Dec 24

31 Mar 25

Decisions Communicated By

2 May 24

26 Jul 24

25 Oct 24

27 Jan 25

10 Apr 25

Please note that we have an allocated budget for each funding round. This may mean a decision needs to be taken to close the application process before the stated date. This is to ensure that applicants have a reasonable chance of success. We therefore advise all potential applicants to apply at their earliest convenience before the deadline for each funding round. If a funding round has been closed due to demand, notice will be confirmed on the CAF application page.

How to Apply

Click on the link below and you will be redirected to the online application form hosted by our partners, Charities Aid Foundation (CAF). You can find out more about CAF here.

To start a new application, click here.

To return to a part-completed or submitted application only, click here.

For any enquiries related to the programme, please contact the Grants Making team at CAF at BentleyALC@cafonline.org

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ADVANCING LIFE CHANCES CASE STUDIES

Please see below some examples of how Advancing Life Chances small grants have made a difference.

Pillar

Organisation

Project

Overview

Access

Afghanistan and Central Asian Association

English classes and careers advice

The Afghanistan & Central Asian Association (ACAA) is an award-winning charity founded by Dr Nooralhaq Nasimi, who arrived as a refugee with his young family in 1999. Their services are vital in supporting vulnerable individuals from some of the most disadvantaged and deprived areas to improve their wellbeing, independence, aspirations and integration. Through their ALC small grant, ACAA were able to deliver a 24-week English language program for 56 newly arrived Afghan and Ukrainian women in Hounslow. 90% of participants reporting increased English language proficiency, 70% actively working towards ESOL qualifications, and 80% enhancing their employability skills. Additionally, 90% experienced boosted confidence and increased involvement within the local community.

Empowerment

Key Changes

Positive Mental Health Through Music

Key Changes provides specialist music mentoring services promoting wellbeing and mental health recovery, delivered in both NHS hospitals and in the community. The ALC small grant helped to support 15 young adults through five weekly one-to-one music studio sessions, working with a dedicated mentor to co-develop and professionally record original music and supported by weekly online group mentoring in mental health self-care skills. One beneficiary of the project commented: “My music makes me feel I’ve let go of my trauma and moved on. I can now present myself with courage, full of strength. I’m very proud to be part of it”.

Quality of Life

Achieved Dreams

Breakfast Bonds

Achieved Dreams’ mission is to optimise the mental and physical wellbeing in young people; with a vision that all children have an opportunity and financial security to develop all of their potential. Breakfast Bonds is a safe space for single parent families going through crisis, compounded by poverty and strained relationships to join each morning for nutritious breakfast. With a Bentley ALC small grant, Achieved Dreams were able to establish and sustain the operation of Cocoa Chats, offering a daily nutritious breakfast to 50 users experiencing crises. The funding significantly made a difference in breaking the cycle of extreme hunger for children, positively affecting their health, mood, focus, and self-esteem. One beneficiary of the project commented: "Breakfast Bonds gave us more than just breakfast; it gave us a chance to bond as a family when everything else felt overwhelming".

Better Future

Britannia Youth Organisation

Ward End Community Allotment

Britania Youth Organisation is a Community Interest company based in the city of Birmingham working at a grassroots level supporting young people from areas of statistically high levels of poverty and deprivation. Bentley’s funding enabled the regeneration of two plots within a local allotment, creating a thriving natural habitat and supporting 50 young people to reconnect with their local environment, learn how to cultivate the land and grow their own fruits and vegetables, encouraging healthy and responsible lifestyles. One beneficiary of the project commented: "I didn't think gardening was going to be fun but I like coming here to meet my friends and it's exciting to see the plants grow”.