Holiday Opportunities Fund
Applications Are Now Closed For 2025
Young Camden Foundation recognises the incredible work our members do to support children and young people, especially during the School holidays.
With the Holiday Opportunities Fund 2025, we want to provide our members with the opportunity to offer fun and enriching activities to young people during the holidays. These activities will help keep children and young people engaged, active, and supported, promoting their mental and physical wellbeing.
Through this fund, our members can organise a variety of activities and projects that will leave a lasting impact on the young people they work with. We want to celebrate their achievements, foster their curiosity, and provide them with enriching activities that broaden their horizons.
If you have any questions, please contact grants@youngcamdenfoundation.org.uk
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Organisation eligibility
This fund is open to YCF members or affiliate members. Applicants must be either a registered charity or a Community Interest Company (CIC) that is Limited by Guarantee. They must be working with young people who either live, go to school, or work in the borough, and we expect the work to be delivered in Camden. Members not based in the borough will need to:
- Show evidence of an agreement with the venue they intend to deliver in, such as an invoice for a hired venue, a letter of partnership with a venue, or an email confirming the use of the venue if the application is successful. This is not an exhaustive list – please contact grants@youngcamdenfoundation.org.uk if you require support with this.
- Explain how they will recruit young people who live, go to school, or work in Camden.
If you are not a member and would like to apply for a grant, you will need to submit a membership request. Only once this process has been completed and your membership has been approved should you complete and submit an application for funding.
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How much can you apply for?
Organisations can apply for up to £1,000. The grant can be spent over multiple school holidays within a 12-month period.
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What can you apply for?
You can apply to the Holiday Opportunities Fund for a variety of fun activities. Suitable examples could include (but are not limited to):
- Holiday Workshops: Support workshops or classes in arts and crafts, music, drama, or other creative activities.
- Sports and Recreation: Fund sports programmes or outdoor activities.
- Cultural Events: Sponsor cultural events, performances, or exhibitions for young people (excluding explicitly religious events).
- Recreational Trips: Fund trips to museums, parks, theatres, or other recreational venues.
- Day Activities: Support activities such as kayaking, paintball, and other exciting experiences.
- Community Festivals: Support festive celebrations, parties, or events that bring the community together.
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Funding from the Holiday Opportunities Fund will be considered for the following purposes (though this is not an exhaustive list so do get in touch if you have any questions):
- Youth or play worker wages @ at least London Living Wage.
- Food and meal provision for participating children and young people during the delivery of the above.
- Resources that support the delivery of the project.
- Admission and ticket costs for relevant excursions and off-site visits.
- Costs for transport (either coach or public transport) to said excursions and off-site visits, where reasonable.
- Costs for staff time carrying out research, planning, data collection, and reporting.
- A core cost contribution (up to 12% of the total grant amount).
-We will not be able to fund:
- Core costs beyond what is described above.
- Regular youth work or play provision that your organisation delivers normally and would continue to deliver regardless of this funding.
- Venue hire costs except where needed for the delivery of work.
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2025 - 2026 Timeframe
- Application Window Opens: Friday 23rd May 2025
- Application Window Closes: 23:59 on Sunday 15th June 2025
- Decision Communicated: Week commencing 30th June 2025
- Grant period: 23/07/25 – 31/05/26. This covers the following Camden school holidays: Summer 2025, October half-term 2025, Christmas break 2025, Easter/spring holiday 2026 and May half-term 2026
- Reporting Deadline: 1 month after completion of trip / project
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Grants panel considerations
When reviewing applications, the grants panel will be asked to consider the following criteria, and applicants may wish to take this into account when writing their application.
- Is the project/ activity clearly defined and well-thought-out?
- Are the objectives and outcomes clearly stated?
- How unique or original is the project compared to existing projects/ activities?
- How will the project create lasting positive impacts for the participants and the community?
- Is the budget detailed and justified?
- Are the costs reasonable and aligned with the project’s objectives?
- Does the project provide good value for money?
- Does the organisation demonstrate the capacity to manage and deliver the proposed project effectively?
- Does the project ensure accessibility and inclusivity for all intended participants?
- Are there specific measures to reach and support underrepresented or vulnerable groups?
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Budget submissions
All grant applicants must now use our custom budget template spreadsheet. If suitably required, applicants can add new lines to the table. We welcome your feedback and suggestions for improvements on our new budget template spreadsheet.
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Application formats
We recognise and respect that written applications are not suitable for every individual. Therefore, if you would prefer to submit your application via video format, please e-mail grants@youngcamdenfoundation.org.uk and we will share a guidance document with you.
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What are the reporting requirements?
We require all grantees to submit a monitoring and evaluation form by a deadline which is outlined on grant agreements, as well as under the 'Timeframe' tab above (once confirmed).
The deadline for submitting monitoring and evaluation forms is typically within the first month after the grant period has ended. it is essential that all grantees meet the deadline.
Please note that some questions may be subject to change. All grant agreements include a URL link to the actual monitoring and evaluation form for each grant awarded.
I would have been bored and who knows what I would have done because I had no where to go. The chats helped a lot with the staff and thanks for the clothes too. I’m settling in now to my new home and going to cook something for us all tonight but thanks again for everything”
Thank you to LabTech and Forvis Mazars Foundation UK for contributing to this funding pot in 2025.
And thank you to individual donors, John Lyon's Charity, Derwent London, The Childhood Trust, Hollick Family Foundation and Camden Council for contributing to this fund in previous years.
