Strengthening the roots of community power – Organisational Development Fund
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The Organisational Development Fund 2025/26
In 2025/26, Two Ridings Community Foundation awarded £76,586 to 27 community organisations through our Organisational Development Fund, a programme dedicated to strengthening the foundations of grassroots organisations across North and East Yorkshire.
Once known as the Step Change Fund, the Organisational Development Fund focuses on the essential behind‑the‑scenes work that keeps community organisations strong, resilient and able to respond to the hard‑hitting social issues affecting local people. When these foundations are secure, organisations can plan ahead, adapt to change and deliver life‑changing support where it’s needed most.
This latest round of funding round takes the total invested since the fund launched in 2022 to over £800,000.
Why organisational development matters
When people picture charities and community groups, they often think of the visible frontline work, food banks, youth clubs, mental health support, community cafés, and advice sessions. These activities are vital. But they can only continue if the organisation behind them is strong, stable and well run.
Organisational development funding invests in the quieter, less visible work that makes everything else possible. It supports leadership, governance, planning, financial resilience, systems, processes and workforce development. It gives organisations the time and resources to strengthen their foundations, so that they can sustain their activities, develop crucial systems and capacities, and ultimately, increase their impact.
Without this support, many groups operate in a constant state of strain, vulnerable to burnout, instability or sudden closure. This fund helps them move from simply surviving to genuinely thriving.
Celia McKeon, Chief Executive of Two Ridings, captures this clearly:
“Our organisational development fund is absolutely vital for community groups. It gives them the resources to strengthen their foundations and build resilience. All the data shows that small charities – often the beating heart of their community – face the greatest struggles to cover costs in the current climate. Without this kind of funding, many organisations simply wouldn’t have the capacity to keep going.”
What this looks like in practice: three organisations building stronger futures
The Land supports highly anxious children and families through tailored sessions and creative, nature‑based groups that build confidence, connection and wellbeing. Their grant is helping them strengthen organisational capacity through business planning, improved bookkeeping systems and essential training. This investment will enable safer delivery, sustainable income and expanded support for isolated neurodiverse young people and their families.
Whitby, Scarborough & Ryedale Disability Action Group (DAG)
Whitby DAG helps disabled and older people stay independent and connected through advice, benefits support, accessible transport, activities and mobility services. Funding is supporting improvements to governance, systems and partnerships, alongside better IT and planning. These changes will help Whitby DAG diversify income, strengthen resilience and enhance the support they provide to disabled people across the region.
Richmond Dales provides inclusive pathways for swimmers of all abilities, including specialist disability provision. Through swimming and volunteering, members develop confidence, skills and wellbeing. Their grant is helping the club build financial resilience, strengthen governance and develop an inclusive workforce by training mentors and building regional partnerships.
Giving grassroots organisations the opportunity to thrive
Grassroots organisations are often the first to spot emerging needs and the last to give up on the people they serve. They are deeply embedded in their communities, trusted by local residents and often led by volunteers or very small staff teams. They support people facing the greatest barriers and inequalities, yet they do so with limited reserves, limited time and limited access to professional support.
Despite their impact, these groups are the least likely to receive funding for organisational development. Project grants may pay for activities, but rarely for the essential work that keeps organisations healthy. As a result, many groups find themselves grappling with the requirements of good governance, overstretched staff and volunteers, fragile finances, limited capacity to record and share impact and difficulty responding to surging demand.
Organisational development funding gives these groups something they rarely have: the resources to plan, to strengthen, to build. The opportunity to become more resilient and more sustainable, so they can continue supporting local people long into the future.
A call to invest in long‑term community strength
The Organisational Development Fund is one of the most important investments we can make in the future of our region. It ensures that the organisations people rely on every day are stable, strategic and sustainable. It strengthens the roots so that the branches, the frontline services, can flourish.
Celia McKeon extends an invitation to those who want to make a lasting difference:
“If you believe in strong, resilient communities, this is a vital fund to support. Every year, we receive many more applications than we can fund, because this kind of resource is so hard for community groups to access. Investing in organisational development means investing in long‑term impact. We would be delighted to work with anyone who wants to help local organisations strengthen, grow and flourish.”
Get in touch with Celia directly to talk through how you can support this fund.
The following are the organisations that have been awarded funding from the Organisational Development Fund in 2026…
Animals in Reach – £8,924
BlueBoxt Creative and Performing Arts – £10,000
Caring Together North Yorkshire (CTNY) – £1,970
Filey Museum – £4,510
Pizza Pals Community Pizzeria CIC – £10,000
Young People Count – £7,338
Humber Job Hub CIC – £9,396
Malton Museum – £9,750
Mashamshire Community Office – £10,000
Richmond Dales Swimming Club – £9,893
Settle Area Swimming Pool – £8,928
Stokesley & District Community Care Association – £9,965
OSCAR’s Paediatric Brain Tumour Charity – £5,723
Chocolate & Co – £10,000
The Land Haxby – £9,939
1st Clifton (York) Sea Scouts – £7,090
Family Matters York – £10,000
Shared Story – £10,000
York Women’s Counselling Service – £7,056
Dads Behaving Madly -£10,00
North Yorkshire Centre for Independent Living – £10,000
Ripon Community House – £9,688
Taking Baby Steps -£10,000
Whitby DAG – £10,000
Claro Enterprises – £10,000
Chain Lane Community Hub – £9,898
Fit mums and Friends – £7,000