Helping communities across the UK gain lasting and life changing benefits from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games

Legacy Trust UK - Aims

Our mission

To support a wide range of innovative cultural and sporting activities for all, which celebrate the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and which will leave a lasting legacy in communities throughout the United Kingdom

Our purpose

To fulfil our mission we will make awards of money for Charitable Purposes including without limitation cultural, educational, healthy, sporting and other charitable activities for the benefit of the community in any Approved Territory.

Our grants

The Trust's awards are made under the following three broad themes:

Sport & Wellbeing
Knowledge & Learning
Arts & Culture

These themes are intended to inspire the widest possible range of projects in which the maximum number of people across the UK can get involved.

The Legacy Trust has introduced a 'legacy standard' as a critical part of its funding criteria, which has to be met by all successful projects. This raises the bar of expectation of what projects should be able to achieve and should be seen as the golden thread that runs through the Trust's funding portfolio.

A total of 16 strategic grants are being made. Twelve of these grants are allocated through national and regional structures for umbrella projects/themes for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the nine English regions - that takes about 50% of the total funds.

The four major national programmes are:

  1. UK School Games 2008-11: a multi-sport event for the UK's elite young athletes of school age, run by the Youth Sport Trust
  2. 'Somewhereto' (under development): a unique project which will help young people to find ways to access the spaces they need - whether it's to do sport, dance or music, making art or showing their films.
  3. Creative Legacy for Young People (open for applications - closing date in Friday 5th June 2009).
  4. Community celebrations (under development).

We will not have any funds for capital, equipment or ongoing running costs of existing organisations.

Projects are likely to encompass:

community sport  | healthy living  | wellbeing  | education  | learning and personal development  | heritage  | the performing arts  | creativity  | community events and festivals 

The Trust welcomes projects which encourage a joined-up approach across sport, education and culture.