New funding announced in response to the impact Covid-19 has had on UK roads for charities, local authorities, and community groups.
Road Safety Trust, a charity dedicated to making the UK’s roads the safest in the world, will open its Small Grants Plus Programme to applications on 15th September for five weeks.
The scheduled Small Grants Programme was suspended in March 2020 and the reintroduction of it has been modified to encourage applications that respond to changing road use and emerging road safety issues as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Eligible projects are pilots or trials, an expansion of successful trials across a new area, and/or the evaluation of road safety interventions.
The modification means that the total value of the fund is £300k with each project being awarded between £20k and £50k.
The Road Safety Trust is the largest independent road safety grant giver in the UK and funds vital research and practical interventions committed to reducing the number of people killed or injured on UK roads. Since it was established in 2014, the Road Safety Trust has awarded grants worth £3.7m to 49 different projects.
Sally Lines, Chief Executive of Road Safety Trust said:
“We are pleased to be able to reintroduce our grant-giving this year and be responsive to current road safety issues with our Small Grants Plus Programme to help smaller local projects around the UK. We are focusing this round of funding on the changing road use and emerging safety issues as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Projects should have the potential for being brought to scale, with the ultimate goal of reducing deaths and injuries both locally, and across the UK.
“We had to suspend our Main Theme funding round earlier this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, so the Small Grants Plus Programme is a welcome opportunity to work towards our vision of zero deaths and serious injuries on UK roads.”
Each application should have a UK lead organisation which must be local public sector, charity, not-for-profit social enterprise or community interest company. Universities can also apply but they must have a partner from one of these organisations as a lead. An element of partnership working is expected in all projects.
The Small Grants Programme will be open for applications from 15th September until 21st October.