The Alpkit Foundation, a not-for-profit independent charity, was set up by the British outdoor retailer Alpkit in July 2015. The charity receives its funding from Alpkit which donates 1% of all its turnover each year.
The Foundation makes small awards that help work to remove barriers in getting outdoors and experiencing wild places. The awards ‘help people overcome the obstacles that prevent them from Going Nice Places and Doing Good Things’.
The specific objectives of Alpkit Foundation are:
- To help young people, especially but not exclusively through leisure time activities, so as to develop their capabilities that they grow to full maturity as individuals and members of society.
- To provide or assist in the provision of facilities in the interests of social welfare for recreation or other leisure time occupation of individuals who have need of such facilities by reason of their youth, age, infirmity or disability, financial hardship or social circumstances with the object of improving their conditions of life.
- To advance the education of the public in the conversation, protection and improvement of the physical and natural environment.
- For the public benefit to promote the education (including social and physical training) of people in such ways as the charity trustees think fit.
- To advance sport or games which promote health by physical or mental skill or exertion and which are undertaken on an amateur basis.
Grants of between £50 and £500 are available.
The funding is intended for:
- Diversity and inclusion projects that engage individual and groups from a diverse range of backgrounds.
- Environmental projects that seek to support, conserve, or generate understanding of our environment and wild places
- Health projects enabling people to gain physical and mental wellbeing from the Great Outdoors.
- Education projects such as First Aid, D of E, Forest Schools and Mountain Leader.
- Participation projects that get more people experiencing the Great Outdoors.
There is particular interest in projects that:
- Encourage responsible outdoor activity.
- Have long lasting benefits.
- Introduce new people to get outdoors.
- Demonstrate value for money.
Applications can be submitted at any time and will be considered every two months.
It is recommended that groups apply at least three months before the start of their project so that the trustees have time to consider the application at their next meeting.
The online application form can be found on the Alpkit Foundation website.
