This page contains an ever-expanding list of research councils, funding bodies and other organisations that support outreach activities through specific programmes.

The list was curated by Pilar Perez-Brown (Lancaster University) in 2018 and will be updated annually. To suggest entries to add, please email afao-request@jiscmail.ac.uk

Key for ‘Type’ column: CPD = Continuing Professional Development; E = Employability; PE = Public Engagement; R = Recruitment; SP = Subject and Career Promotion; WP = Widening Participation

Deadline Category Funder Fund Subject Type Value Notes Links
Host institution HE Institution Various Various CPD, R, WP, SP, E, PE Information available from respective departmental, faculty or central admissions, recruitment, employability, enterprise and research  teams
Government programme National collaborative outreach programme (NCOP) Various Support to GCES students WP Depends on the region. Access with link Funds are allocated regionally through consortia, identifiable through the OfS website https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/promoting-equal-opportunities/national-collaborative-outreach-programme-ncop/ncop-in-your-area/
Co-ordinating body National co-ordinating centre for Public Engagement Various Various (in link) PE Comprehensive list of PE funds https://www.publicengagement.ac.uk/do-engagement/funding 
15/03 and 15/09 (each year) Professional body European Society for Evolutionary Biology ESEB outreach fund Evolutionary Biology SP, PE €1000 – €1,500 The goal of this initiative is to improve public knowledge about evolution globally. Applications for funding will be accepted for educational initiatives that promote evolution, translation of evolutionary material (books, films, and websites) intended for a general audience, public outreach seminars, public exhibitions, etc. https://eseb.org/prizes-funding/outreach-fund/ 
17/03, 17/04, 07/06, 05/09 (2019) Professional body Anatomical Society Public Engagement Grants Anatomy WP, SP, PE Up to £500 Members of the Anatomical Society can apply to support outreach and public engagement activities that ignite curiosity in young and old audiences about the anatomy of humans and animals. https://www.anatsoc.org.uk/funding-and-awards/grants-and-prizes/public-engagement-and-outreach-grants 
20/03/2019 (next round opens in mid-July) Professional body British Ecological Society Outreach Grants Ecology WP, SP, PE Up to £2,000 These grants are designed to support the promotion of ecological science to a wider audience through the organisation of public events. Grants will not be awarded for purely nature conservation purposes or any activity that does not promote the science of ecology. Please note awards will be made in May, the project start date should therefore be after May 2019. https://www.britishecologicalsociety.org/funding/outreach-grants/ 
21/03/2019 (after this, portal will reopen in January 2020) Research Council Arts Council England (NLF) Creative People and Places 2019-23 Arts and humanities CPD, WP, PE Up to £3 million for each new programme over 3 years/  £750,000 – £1,750,000 for
expansions
The Creative People and Places fund focuses on parts of the country where involvement in arts and culture is significantly below the national average. We believe that everyone has the right to experience and be inspired by art, so we want to transform the opportunities open to people in those places. https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/creative-people-and-places 
17:00 on 26/03/2019 Charity Wellcome Public Engagement Fund Health and life sciences CPD, R, WP, SP, PE £25,000 – £250,000 This fund enables individuals and organisations to use creative approaches in engaging the public with health research. https://wellcome.ac.uk/funding/public-engagement-fund
12:00 on 27/03/2019 and 25/9/2019 Professional body Society for Endocrinology Public Engagement Grant Endocrinology SP, PE, WP Up to £1,000 The Society is committed to supporting its members to engage non-specialist audiences with hormones and the impact of endocrinology. https://www.endocrinology.org/grants-and-awards/grants/public-engagement-grant/
29/03 and 14/10/2019 Professional body Institution of Engineering and Technology Engineering education grant scheme STEM CPD, WP, SP, PE Up to £5,000 and up-to-four awards of £15,000 The Engineering Education Grant Scheme (EEGS) aims to engage young people aged 5-19 in learning about engineering and to develop the professional skills of those involved in supporting STEM learning and careers awareness. The EEGS also supports projects that improve wider engineering literacy. https://www.theiet.org/resources/teachers/grant-scheme.cfm
31/03 and 30/09 each year. Professional body The Society for Radiological Protection Educational Resources Development Scheme Radiogical Protection SP, PE Up to £3,000 The aim is to stimulate & improve teaching in radiological protection by recognised educational institutes for recognised educational awards. https://srp-uk.org/careers/support-schemes
12:00 on 01/04 and 01/10 each year Professional body Microbiology Society Education and outreach grants Health and life sciences WP, SP, PE Up to £1,000 To support relevant science teaching or promotion initiatives, or to support developments likely to lead to an improvement in the teaching of any aspect of microbiology. https://microbiologysociety.org/grants/grants-prizes/education-and-outreach-grants.html
 01/04, 01/07, 01/10, 15/01 (every year) Professional body British Society for Immunology Communicating Immunology Grants Health and life sciences WP, SP, PE Up to £1,000 The aim of the grants is to stimulate interest, discussion and understanding of immunology amongst a wider audience; support formal and informal learning about immunology and target a wide range of audiences, with a particular interest in reaching new or traditionally hard to reach audiences https://www.immunology.org/grants-and-prizes/communicating-immunology
09/04/2018 (there wil be another one for September) Professional body Biochemical Society Scientific Outreach Grants Health and life sciences WP, SP, PE Up to £1000 The Society wishes to support scientific outreach activities that communicate the excitement of molecular bioscience to young people and the community. The aim of the outreach grants is to increase participation in the molecular biosciences at school level and beyond through engagement activities. http://www.biochemistry.org/Grants/ScientificOutreachGrants.aspx
29/04/2019 Professional body Royal Society of Biology Outreach and Engagement Grants (Biology Week) Biology WP, PE Up to £200 for small grants and £500 for full grants This deadline is for applications for events taking place in Biology week. The aim of the grant scheme is to support outreach and engagement events and activities that look to be creative, impactful, and suited for audiences or based in locations that may have otherwise limited opportunities to engage with bioscience topics or concepts. https://www.rsb.org.uk/get-involved/grants/outreach-grants
12:00 on 13/05/2019 Professional body Royal Society of Chemistry Outreach Fund (smaller grants) Chemistry CPD, WP, SP, PE Up to £2,000 The Outreach Fund aims to encourage and support the development of projects that raise awareness of the place of chemistry in people’s everyday lives, especially those not already interested in chemistry, and/or develop the science communication skills of people who are already highly trained in chemistry http://www.rsc.org/awards-funding/funding/outreach-fund/
12:00 on 13/05/2020 Professional body Royal Society of Chemistry Outreach Fund (large grants) Chemistry CPD, WP, SP, PE Up to £10,000 The Outreach Fund aims to encourage and support the development of projects that raise awareness of the place of chemistry in people’s everyday lives, especially those not already interested in chemistry, and/or develop the science communication skills of people who are already highly trained in chemistry http://www.rsc.org/awards-funding/funding/outreach-fund/
17/05, 16/08, 15/11 (2019) Professional body The British Society for the History of Science Outreach and Engagement Project Grants History of Science WP, SP, PE Up to £200 The BSHS Outreach and Engagement Committee offers grants to support engagement and outreach projects in the history of science. We are keen to encourage projects that engage with the history of science, technology and medicine in new and exciting ways and are applicable to their intended audiences. http://www.bshs.org.uk/grants/special-projects-grants
17:00 on 09/07/2019 Charity Wellcome Public Engagement Fund Health and life sciences CPD, R, WP, SP, PE £25,000 – £250,000 This fund enables individuals and organisations to use creative approaches in engaging the public with health research. https://wellcome.ac.uk/funding/public-engagement-fund
23:59 on 01/09/2019 Professional body The Palaeontological Association Engagement Grants Paleontology SP, PE Up to £5,000 (in exceptional circumstances up to £10,000) The Palaeontological Association aims to raise awareness of palaeontology and associated sciences via public outreach events and by awarding outreach grants. Awards are made to encourage educational outreach, public engagement, and related initiatives in palaeontological themes. https://www.palass.org/awards-grants/grants/engagement-grants
12:00 on 15/09/every year Professional body SPMA Community Engagement Award Archaeology WP, SP, PE Up to £500 A core aim of the SPMA is the promotion of the archaeology of the late medieval to modern world, and the Community Engagement Award is designed to support individuals, groups and societies in developing new public-facing initiatives, whether one-off events, programmes of activities, digital archaeology or other creative outputs http://www.spma.org.uk/prizes-and-grants/community-award
31/10/2019 (next round/financial year) Professional body Anatomical Society Public Engagement Grants Anatomy WP, SP, PE Up to £500 Members of the Anatomical Society can apply to support outreach and public engagement activities that ignite curiosity in young and old audiences about the anatomy of humans and animals. https://www.anatsoc.org.uk/funding-and-awards/grants-and-prizes/public-engagement-and-outreach-grants 
Open (to members of the BSPP) Professional body British Society for Plant Pathology BSPP Plant Pathology Promotion Fund Plant Pathology WP, SP Up to £2,000 BSPP wishes to promote an understanding and awareness of the importance of plant pathology to a wider audience than its membership. To that end it has established a fund for the promotion of plant pathology, with the aim of stimulating interest in, and knowledge and awareness of, plant pathology to people who do not normally come into contact with the subject. https://www.bspp.org.uk/funds/promotion.php 
Open (no deadline) Professional body The Physiological Society Public engagement grants Health and life sciences SP, PE Up to £500 To support running a large public activity/event discussing physiology (including non-members) http://www.physoc.org/outreach-grants
Open (no deadline) Professional body Royal Institute of Philosophy Schools Conference Funding Philosophy CPD, WP, SP, PE Up to £3,000 for short events, up to £5,000 for longer ones. The Royal Institute of Philosophy is keen to sponsor conferences for teachers and students of philosophy in schools and sixth form colleges, and we sponsor several events run by departments of philosophy in the UK each year. Conferences could be aimed at teachers or at students.  While some conferences might be appropriate for both groups, we recognise that each will have its own particular needs and interests, and we will be very happy to sponsor events aimed at just one of the groups. http://royalinstitutephilosophy.org/funding-education/conferences/
Open (no deadline) Charity Heritage Lottery Fund Young Roots Heritage WP, SP, PE £10,000 – £50,000 Through Young Roots, we want to give young people aged 11–25 the chance to plan and deliver their own heritage projects. They’re supported along the way by heritage and youth organisations working together. Projects celebrate the young people’s achievements and share what they’re learning with the wider community. https://www.hlf.org.uk/looking-funding/our-grant-programmes/young-roots
Open (no deadline) Research Council Creative Scotland Open Project Funding Arts and humanities CPD, WP, SP, E, PE £1000 – £150,000 For artists, groups, and creative organisations who are looking to apply for money to support them on their artistic or creative projects.If you are looking for less than £15,000, you should apply at least 8 weeks before the start of your project. If applying for more than this, you should apply at least 12 weeks before you plan to start. http://www.creativescotland.com/funding/funding-programmes/open-project-funding
 Open (no deadline) Research Council Science and Technology Facilities Council Leadership Fellows STEM CPD, SP, PE Up to  £125,000 Support the very best scientists and engineers in STFC’s community to undertake extended programmes of the highest-quality, innovative public engagement as a core part of their job role, while maintaining an active research programme. https://stfc.ukri.org/public-engagement/public-engagement-grants/pe-funding-opportunities/public-engagement-fellowships/
Open (no deadline) Research Council Medical Research Council MRC Seed Fund Health and life sciences CPD, WP, R, PE Up to £100 – £5,000 To encourage and support engagement with the public and other stakeholders, funds are available to enable MRC-funded scientists to pilot new activities and develop innovative engagements. https://mrc.ukri.org/research/public-engagement/public-engagement-funding/
Open (no deadline) Research Council STFC Reaction Award Science and Technology WP, SP, PE Up to £5,000 To provide quick-response public engagement funding for timely projects focused on unexpected and/or highly significant discoveries related to STFC’s science and technology remit and on significantly heightened awareness of the social, cultural, or economic impacts of STFC science and technology. Also to highlight the achievements of STFC science and technology, demonstrating the excitement of research and the value of STEM to the UK. https://stfc.ukri.org/public-engagement/public-engagement-grants/pe-funding-opportunities/pe-reaction-awards/
Open (no deadline) Research Council Arts Council England (NLF) Project Grants Arts and humanities CPD, WP, SP, PE £1,000 – £100,000 Project Grants supports thousands of individual artists, community and cultural organisations. Arts, museums and library projects. https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/projectgrants
Open (no deadline) (for members) Professional body Society for Applied Microbiology Public Engagement Grant Microbiology SP, PE Up to £3,000 This grant is designed to support events where aspects of microbiology are promoted to the general public and other relevant stakeholders. The main criterion is that the event or activity must in some way promote the science of microbiology. https://sfam.org.uk/grants/public-engagement-grant-2019.html
Open (no deadline) Research Council AHRC Funding for Impact and Engagement (FoF) Arts and humanities SP, PE, WP Up to £100,000 The AHRC Follow-on Funding for Impact and Engagement scheme operates without formal deadlines and will offer awards of up to £100,000 (fEC) for a maximum of 12 months. Smaller awards of up to £30,000 (fEC) are encouraged for shorter or higher risk activities https://ahrc.ukri.org/funding/apply-for-funding/current-opportunities/followonfunding/
Ongoing Charity Big Lottery Fund National Lottery Awards Community Relationships WP, PE £300 – £10,000 We will fund organisations with great project ideas that shape the places and spaces that matter to communities, bring more people together and build strong relationships in and across communities and enable more people to fulfil their potential by working to address issues at the earliest possible stage https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/funding/under10k  
Open (no deadline) Professional body Black Environment Network Ethnic Minorities Award Scheme Support science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) PE Around £500 Small grants are available to schools, community groups and individuals undertaking projects which concern the environment and involve people from ethnic communities. http://www.ben-network.org.uk/grants/emas.html
date tbc Professional body Royal Society of Biology Outreach and Engagement Grants Biology WP, PE Up to £200 for small grants and £500 for full grants The aim of the grant scheme is to support outreach and engagement events and activities that look to be creative, impactful, and suited for audiences or based in locations that may have otherwise limited opportunities to engage with bioscience topics or concepts. https://www.rsb.org.uk/get-involved/grants/outreach-grants
Closed until next year Professional body Royal Institute of Philosophy Departamental Conference Funding Philosophy CPD, WP, SP, PE Up to £5,000 Each year the Royal Institute of Philosophy offers sponsorship of up to £5,000 for a conference hosted by a university department of philosophy. http://royalinstitutephilosophy.org/funding-education/conferences/
Closed (Submission period is from 15 November – 15 February each year) Professional body European Geosciences Union EGU Public Engagement Grants Earth, planetary and space sciences. CPD, SP, PE € 1,000 The €1000 grants are awarded to EGU members interested in developing an outreach project that aims to raise awareness of geosciences outside the scientific community. Awarded to the two applicants who are judged to have proposed the most innovative and effective project https://www.egu.eu/outreach/peg/
Closed. The next round of funding will open in 2020. Professional body The Royal Society Partnership Grants STEM WP, SP, PE Up to £3000 The grants are vailable to schools to enable students, aged 5 – 18, to carry out science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) projects. Additionally we are looking to support projects on computing and data science. https://royalsociety.org/grants-schemes-awards/grants/partnership-grants/
Closed. Next round opens in Spring 2019 Professional body Institute of Physics Public Engagement Grant Physics CPD, WP, PE Up to £3000 The scheme provides financial support to individuals and organisations running physics-based events and activities in the UK and Ireland. http://www.iop.org/about/grants/outreach/page_38843.html
Closed Professional body The Physiological Society Public engagement grants Health and life sciences SP, PE Up to £20,000 To support running a large public activity/event discussing physiology (including non-members) http://www.physoc.org/outreach-grants
This round closed on 21/02/2019 Research Council Arts Council England (NLF) Developing your Creative Practice Arts and humanities CPD, SP, WP £2, 000 – £10, 000 Research and development opportunities, building new networks,  creating new work. Individual artists and/or creative practitioners are elegible for this fund. You can find full eligibility criteria in the guidance for applicants. Organisations cannot apply. https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/DYCP
Next round tbc Professional body Royal Institute of Philosophy Postgraduate Conference Funding Philosophy CPD, WP, SP, PE Up to £5,000 The Royal Institute of Philosophy sponsors postgraduate conferences hosted by university departments of philosophy.  Each year the Royal Institute of Philosophy also offers sponsorship of up to £5,000 for a conference hosted by a university department of philosophy. http://royalinstitutephilosophy.org/funding-education/conferences/
Applications are closed for now Professional body Royal Academy of Engineering Ingenious Awards Engineering WP, SP, PE £3,000 – £30,000 Ingenious is a grant scheme for projects that engage the public with engineers and engineering. https://www.raeng.org.uk/grants-and-prizes/ingenious-grant