The Public Health Community Grant Fund offers funding for health and wellbeing projects in Harlow.
The purpose of the grant is to fund health and wellbeing initiatives which support our health and wellbeing partnership strategy and meet the priorities of the Health and Wellbeing Partnership Board.
There is no minimum funding amount you can apply for, but the maximum is £5000 for single partner projects and £12,000 for multi-partner projects.
Eligibility
The grant is open to any voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise (VCFSE) organisations that provide services to the residents of Harlow. Organisations should be constituted groups.
Statutory services (such as health, education, social care or local authority) can apply, but must have a VCFSE partner organisation.
We will consider funding both new and existing projects that require continuation funding. If you're applying for continuation funding, you must demonstrate how you are proactively seeking funding from other sources.
You can apply as a solo project or as a partnership, where there are 2 or more partners collaborating. Each partner needs to be an eligible organisation. Successful partner applications will be awarded to a lead organisation, and they are responsible for managing the funding and paying any partners for the work they do. We advise having a written agreement between all partners before funding is awarded.
Organisations applying for funding can only apply once, either for solo funding or as a partnership.
Projects must:
- benefit Harlow residents (any age group)
- improve resident's health and wellbeing (you will need to demonstrate how you plan to achieve this)
- address at least 1 priority of the Health and Wellbeing Partnership Board
- promoting healthy weight and encouraging active lifestyles across the life course
- improving mental health and wellbeing
- tackling addiction and reducing harm from substance use and gambling
We will not fund:
- ordinary running costs of your service (such as ongoing staff salaries)
- staff costs that are not linked to the project
- costs of equipment or materials that are not directly used for your new initiative
- any retrospective costs
Apply
The application window for the financial years 2026 to 2028 is open until 4pm on 23 October 2026.
If you have any issues completing the online form, you can also download a Word version of the application form (docx)
If you need advice or support before applying, please contact our Health and Wellbeing team health.wellbeing@harlow.gov.uk.
We will be holding drop-in sessions in the Safer to Go Stow Hub (28 The Stow) for organisations to get support with their application. These will take place on:
- Tuesday 29 September 2pm to 4pm
- Friday 2 October 10am to 12pm
- Monday 5 October 4pm to 6pm
Once the application window has closed, the Health and Wellbeing Partnership Board will review all applications and contact successful applicants to discuss the next stage - this usually takes around 1 month from the application date.
What happens next
If your application is successful, your project must be delivered by 31 March 2028. You will have to return any grant funds if the project is not delivered or the organisation receiving the funding stops operating.
We will award 80% of the funding upon completion of a signed funding agreement and the remaining 20% will be awarded on completion of end of project evaluation, including budget spend for project.
You will need to provide a interim report, including budget spend, halfway through the project, as well as an evaluation at the end of the project, which must be returned no later than the end of April 2028. You can download a copy of the evaluation form (docx).