The Esmée Fairbairn Communities and Collections Fund supports work with museum collections to improve inclusion and equitable working with community partners. They offer:
- 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 funding to support social and climate justice, in ways that are relevant to local contexts and relationships.
- Partnership project grants to museums and community organisations that work equitably together and share aims for DEI; with ambitious and compelling ideas for inclusive project work with collections.
The fund has a twin focus on inclusion and collections. They anticipate this will result in work that explores and influences key themes in social and climate justice, such as wellbeing, decolonisation, climate crisis, antiracism and others. Importantly, they will look for local relevance and holistic approaches from applicants, for example asking applicants have decided who to work with.
Grants of up to £100k over a maximum of three years are available and they expect to award around 12 grants per year in two funding rounds. The deadline for the first round is 5 February 2025. The deadline for the second round will be 16 July 2025.