Revenue grants of between £50,000 and £110,000 are available to Museum Association members for work that develops inclusion and equitable working with community partners to improve access to museum collections.
The Esmée Fairbairn Communities and Collections Fund is the evolution of the Esmée Fairbairn Collections Fund, with a new name that better represents the Foundation’s focus on collections, communities and inclusion.
The Fund, which is being managed by the Museums Association on behalf of the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, now places a greater emphasis on supporting work with museum collections to improve inclusion and equitable working with community partners. It offers:
- Core grants to museums that have established strategic aims for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and that are ready to use their collections and the Foundation’s funding to support social and climate justice, in ways that are relevant to local contexts and relationships, and
- Partnership project grants to museums and community organisations that work equitably together and share aims for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) with ambitious and compelling ideas for inclusive project work with collections.
Revenue grants of between £50,000 and £110,000 (this was £40,000 - £100,000 in 2026) over a maximum of 3 years are available. The Foundation expects to award around 12 grants per year in 2 funding rounds during 2027. This is the first funding round for 2026/27. The dates of a second funding round in 2027 are available on the Foundation’s website under the 'heading 'Key Dates'.
The Foundation wants to support a range of museums and partnerships through the Fund, from those that are starting out in their participatory practice, to those that are leading change on behalf of the museum sector and working equitably with communities.
Partnership applications must include at least one Museum Association institutional member museum partner. It is expected that the museum partner(s) will hold collections that will be used during the partnership project and that a museum partner is typically well positioned to receive and coordinate funding on behalf of the group.
Applicants, or one applicant in a partnership, are normally expected to be accredited or working towards accreditation. However, occasional exceptions may be made for organisations that are not an accredited museum but whose activities are based on the care and interpretation of collections of historical, artistic or scientific interest, provided they are in the public sector or have charitable status.
Funding is most likely to go to organisations where applicants can demonstrate the Foundation’s investment can make the most difference.
For core grants, it is expected that grants will be awarded to smaller and medium-sized museums where the grant is a relatively high proportion of turnover or where the museum has few other sources of core funding.
Museums that have previously received project funding are welcome to apply again to the Communities and Collections Fund for work that builds on earlier experience. In the future, core-funded grantees may also reapply for the next stage of their work. However, the core grants are intended to support a particular stage in a museum’s strategic development so repeat funding will be rare and continuous funding is unlikely to be offered.
Please note that all applicants will be required to have a Safeguarding policy for Vulnerable Adults.
The timeline for decisions in June 2027 is:
- Eligible organisations interested in applying should contact the Museums Association (MA) to discuss their idea(s)
- Wednesday 20 January 2027: deadline for submission of an Expressions of Interest.
- Week commencing 8 February 2027: confirmation of whether shortlisted for funding
- 5 May 2027: shortlisted applicants make a second stage application.
- End June 2027: grants awarded.