January 2026 Small Grants Programme Application Form

Theatres Trust

Small Grants Programme supported by The Linbury Trust
Application Form

Preparing your application form

Please ensure you refer to the guidance notes for making an application to the Small Grants Programme to support your response to each question below. We are unable to answer individual enquiries about the scheme due to the number of applications we receive.

We require a digital submission of your application form and scanned supporting documents. Please do not post your application.

If you are unable to sign the application form digitally, we will accept the application form unsigned but will require a signature on the acceptance letter if successful.

Please provide your budget in .ods, xls or xlsx format.

Please provide supporting documents in .pdf or .jpg format as appropriate.

Applications will be acknowledged when received and logged. If you do not receive a confirmation within five working days of submission, please contact info@theatrestrust.org.uk or phone the office on 020 7836 8591.

Please refer to the guidance notes for additional information regarding eligibility and to support your proposal as you complete the application form.
1 Your project
Please give a one-line summary of your project *
2 Contact details
2.1 Name of individual making this application on behalf of the organisation*
2.2 Name of organisation: (Please note individuals are not eligible to apply)*
2.3 Your position in the organisation*
2.4 Address of organisation/venue operator*

Street Address

Town

CountyCountry (Note that eligible applicants must be based in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland)

Post Code
2.5 Telephone(s)
2.6 Mobile(s)
2.7 Email(s)*
example@example.com
2.8 Theatre website (if applicable)
2.9 Theatre X (formerly Twitter) address (if applicable)
2.10 Theatre Facebook (if applicable)
2.11 Theatre Instagram (if applicable)
3 Your Theatre
3.1 Address of theatre (if different from organisation/venue operator address)

Street Address

Address Line 2

CityCountry (Note that eligible applicants must be based in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland)

Post Code
3.2 Legal form of your organisation (CIO / charity / CIC / company / local authority)
3.3 Is your organisation run by a paid staff team or run and managed by volunteers?

Paid StaffVolunteersOther
3.4 Your Company Number (if applicable)
3.5 Your Registered Charity Number (if applicable)
3.6 Your VAT Registration Number (if applicable)
3.7 Do you have audited or certified accounts for the last two years? (If yes, please provide .pdf copies with your application; if no, please explain why): Yes/No

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3.7 Space to provide details if you do not have accounts for the last two years:
Building
3.8 Do you own or lease your theatre?*

OwnLeaseOther
3.9 How long have you owned or leased your theatre?*
3.10 If you lease your theatre, please give the legal name of the freeholder of your theatre
3.11 If you lease your theatre, what is the remaining term of the lease? (Please note that eligible applicants are required to have leases of five years or more)*
3.12 Please give the contact details of the freeholder and / or any head leaseholder?
3.13 Please include a signed copy of your current lease (if applicable) in .pdf format) – a copy of the page that details length of term is sufficient

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3.14 The name of the architect who originally built your theatre (if known) and the year it officially opened
3.15 Is your theatre building listed for its heritage of architectural value?

YesNo
3.16 If yes, please provide the Grade or Category
3.17 Is your theatre/ building listed as an asset of community value (England) or on land registered with a community interest (Scotland)?
3.18 Please provide up to three images that illustrate where the works relating to your project will take place

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Programme

NB. We ask you to work within the word guides (where given), making the most of the opportunity to tell us your story while also keeping your information concise.
3.19 Please tell us your ambitions and hopes for the future of your venue and how these have been shaped by the cost-of-living crisis and current societal and environmental pressures (100-word guide)

0/100
3.20 Please outline the programming approach taken at the theatre (maximum 100- word guide)

0/100
3.21 How many live public performances are presented across your auditoriums in one year? *

3.22 Please note that to be eligible, your venue must present at least 30 public live performances per year. Please refer to the guidance document for details of our requirements in relation to live performances. Please complete the table below

	Financial year: i.e. 2024/25	Name	Capacity (seating/standing)	No of live public performances presented in that year	Total number of attendances in that year
Auditorium 1
Auditorium 2
Auditorium 3

4 Project proposal and impact

NB. We ask you to work within the word guides (where given), making the most of the opportunity to tell us your story whilst also keeping your information concise.
4.1 Please tell us about the project for which you are requesting funding (200-word guide).
4.2 Please tell us why the project is a priority for your venue and needs to be addressed at this time. (100-word guide)
4.3 Please tell us the impact you anticipate the project having for your venue, in relation to one or more of the following Theatres Trust priorities: Resilience, Inclusivity, Environmental Sustainability and Placemaking.

Please note, we encourage a broad range of projects through this scheme and don’t expect all projects to meet all priorities, so please only answer angainst the following Theatres Trust priorities that are relevant to your project.
4.3.1 Resilience: If relevant, please tell us how this work will help your venue to adapt effectively in response to changing conditions, both internal and external (100-word guide)

0/100
4.3.2 Inclusivity: If relevant, please tell us how this work will help your venue to provide a welcoming environment for all your users. (100-word guide)

0/100
4.3.3 Sustainability: If relevant, please tell us how this work will improve the environmental sustainability of your theatre and contribute to good practice in response to the climate emergency (100-word guide)

0/100
4.3.4 Placemaking: If relevant, please tell us how this work will help to position or reinforce your venue as a local, national and/or international asset. (100-word guide)

0/100
5 Project cost and budget
5.1 What is the total cost of your project? Maximum grant available is £7,500*
5.2 How much are you applying for from the Small Grant Programme?*
5.3 If the Small Grant Programme will not cover the full cost of the project, please tell us how much other funding you have already secured?
5.4 Have you already secured quotes for the goods / services related to this application?

YesNo
5.5 If yes, please provide details and include .pdf copies of these quotes as attachments to your application

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5.6 Please provide a budget with net figures and an analysis of VAT expenditure for your project, including the allocation of a grant from the Small Grants Programme. Please submit this as an attachment in Windows .xls or xlxs format

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6 Project and risk management
6.1 Please tell us who will be responsible for the management of the project, what role(s) they hold and their experience of managing other projects of a similar nature
6.2 If the owner of your theatre is different from the leaseholder of your theatre please confirm if you already have the permission you need to undertake your project or when you intend to secure this permission
6.3 Will your project require planning permission, listed building consent or conservation area consent? Yes/No (If yes, please give details, including the current status of any planning permissions or consents)
6.4 Please tell us about risks that you anticipate being involved in the project, and how you propose to plan for and manage these risks
6.5 Please tell us when you would like the work to take place if funding is awarded
6.6 Do you have a Safeguarding Policy? Yes/No

YesNo
6.7 Have you previously received a grant from this or any other Theatres Trust grants scheme? Yes/No

YesNo
6.8 If so, have you submitted your Evaluation Form, and when did you submit it? (Please note, you cannot apply to this scheme until you have completed the relevant works and submitted the Evaluation Form)
I have read and agree to the Terms and Conditions of the Small Grants Programme (available on Theatres Trust website)
Print name: (Note: The individual described in question 2.1 should sign this form)
On behalf of Organisation
Date

MonthDayYear
Date
Checklist

Please ensure your digital submission includes the following attachments to the email provided:

Question 3.17 Signed copy of your current lease (if applicable) in .pdf format – a copy of the page that details length of term is sufficient

Question 3.11 Last two years of accounts (if available) in .pdf format)

Question 3.22 Digital images related to your project in .jpg format

Question 5.5 Quotes for goods or services (if available) in .pdf format

Question 5.6 Budget in .ods, .xls or .xlsx format
What happens next

We will acknowledge receipt of your application within two working days

Applications will be acknowledged when received and logged. If you do not receive an acknowledgement within five working days of submission, please telephone our offices on 020 7836 8591 to confirm receipt of your application. Please leave a voicemail if we are unable to answer your call so we know to call you back.

Theatres Trust will not be responsible for the non-delivery of your emailed application due to any technological reason. It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure that their application has been received.

We will assess the application against the criteria outlined in the Guidance Notes (available on the Theatres Trust website)
Please note that you may be asked to provide further details on your project for the Theatres Trust to make a decision on your application.

We will let you know the outcome of the application within approximately 16 weeks of the closing date. Grants will be awarded in line with the funding request.

If successful, we will send you an offer letter, bank details form, grant agreement and terms and conditions.

Your grant will be paid to you in full once you tell us that the work is due to start. The grant must be claimed within one year of the date of the offer letter.

Once you let us know that the project is due to start, we will issue you with an Evaluation Report form which you must send back to us within six months of completion of the project in order that we can assess the impact of our support, create case studies and feedback to our partners. You may not re-apply for a further Theatres Trust Grant until your evaluation report has been received.

As the scheme is over-subscribed, if you have previously received a grant from us and you submitted your last Evaluation Report less than a year prior to the current application deadline you are likely to be a lower priority for support.

If unsuccessful, we will send you an email with a brief indication of why you have not been successful and providing general feedback. Unfortunately, we are not able to provide any further detailed feedback due to the volume of applications we receive. You may re-apply in future rounds.

Theatres Trust, March 2025
Should be Empty:

1 Your project

2 Contact details

3 Your Theatre

Building

Programme

4 Project proposal and impact

5 Project cost and budget

6 Project and risk management