We were pleased to announce the £20,000 LGBTI Recovery Fund in January. The fund has now been topped up with an additional £6k and extended until the end of May 2021.

So far during the COVID-19 pandemic we’ve been able to distribute over £120,000 directly to LGBTI groups and organisations across Scotland to support their efforts in COVID-19 relief and resilience.

We hope this further £26,000 fund will help in the recovery of LGBTI groups providing vital support to LGBTI people across the country. 

The LGBTI Recovery Fund is made possible through funding from the Scottish Government Communities Recovery Fund.

We have set out the following fund criteria to ensure maximum benefit for LGBTI community organisations and groups across Scotland:

• LGBTI Groups must be not for profit and LGBTI led.
• Individuals cannot apply.
• Requested funds must be for a purpose.
• The fund is designed primarily for small amounts (Between £50 – £500)
• Groups must be in Scotland, or deliver work in Scotland.
• All money must be committed by the 31st May 2021.
• We are unable to fund duplication.

There may be exceptions, especially to ensure the representation of under represented groups within the LGBTI community, which we are happy to discuss.

The PRIDE Support Fund is a £7.5k fund supporting Scotland’s Pride events, which have been running online during the pandemic, with the cost of technology and mitigation. We want to help ensure Pride’s have the tools to continue inclusive and accessible online events until large public events can take place again once more. Pride and visibility events are an important means to reduce isolation and stigma for LGBTI people and this fund recognises the contribution of Scotland’s Pride events to these aims. Equality Network have already, thanks to our funders, been able to support online visibility and pride events in Scotland with over £25k of support funding in 2020/21. This is part of the LGBTI Recovery Fund and the criteria above applies.

LGBTI organisations and groups in Scotland can express interest in the available funding here. If you are a sports group you should apply via our funding partner LEAP Sports Scotland here.

This funding is to support LGBTI groups and organisations with limited resources and capacity with Equality Network acting as a intermediary organisation to ensure funds go quickly to LGBTI communities that need them most. Organisations looking for larger amounts of funding should apply directly to the Scottish Government Communities Recovery Fund.

Should you have any questions about the fund please contact scott@equality-network.org