Wilson Foundation

The Wilson Foundation, a UK-registered charity established in 1970 in memory of Northamptonshire businessman Connolly Thomas Wilson OBE, provides a 'helping hand' to underprivileged young people under 21 in Northamptonshire who lack opportunities. Its enduring mission centers on fostering personal development, resilience, and social inclusion through character-building activities, evolving from direct individual support to funding community projects and trusted local charities like The Prince’s Trust and Northamptonshire Community Foundation. Guided by values of community service and belief in youth potential, it acts as an enabler, prioritizing practical interventions that address inequity and build skills via youth clubs, mentoring, education, and social programs.

It funds initiatives advancing the personal, social, or educational growth of disadvantaged children and youth in the county, including project work, core costs, capital items, one-off projects, and multi-year support for proven efforts. Beneficiaries are strictly local young people facing limited opportunities.

Eligible applicants include UK-registered charities, community groups, and academic institutions based in and primarily benefiting Northamptonshire youth; it favors small to medium-sized local organizations with grassroots ties, without strict income thresholds. Applications are via online form on a rolling basis, with trustee decisions several times yearly and responses in 2-4 months—no fixed deadlines or EOI required.

Distinctive for its 50+ years of hyper-local focus, the Foundation eschews national or generalist funding, religious restrictions, or non-Northamptonshire projects, proactively partnering with aligned youth specialists for targeted, high-impact grants typically £3,500–£35,000 (most £5,000–£30,000), emphasizing measurable opportunity gaps over broad appeals.