Aim of the Fund

This Fund seeks to meet our strategic aim to enable vulnerable communities living in priority geographical areas to improve their lives.

Many communities in India have inherent strengths which are often overlooked when modern development frameworks are used to view them. They have closely knit societies, progressive views and approaches to resource utilisation and sustainability, and are extremely conscious of their relationship with the environment. Their traditional knowledge has relevance to modern ways of living.

But communities also face many challenges with inequality of opportunity, driven by a combination of social and systemic drivers that can be difficult to overcome without the right support. The opening up of spaces, development of infrastructure, particularly roads, and the modern development process have all caused shifts for local communities.

Movements, over time, of people to urban centres, driven by economic forces, have also transported some of these issues to urban centres. Urban development concerns emerge largely around building a balance between the hugely important roles that newly arrived communities have and will play and the ability of urban centres to provide for them.

Eligibility

Organisations supported within the India programme have to be local Indian NGOs with Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) registration.

We do not support non-Indian organisations or locally registered branches of non-Indian organisations. We do not support organisations without FCRA registration (please note that we do not work on prior permission).

We do not support political or religious institutions.

If you do choose to pursue an application for support from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, please ensure that you do it directly and not through consultants or fundraisers.

We prefer to work with organisations that have self-imposed and self-implemented policies on honesty and transparency in their finances and operations that are of the highest standard. We also prefer to work with organisations whose strategies and activities are formed on the basis of community leadership or participation, local knowledge and experience.

We will not support:

• Individuals or proposals for the benefit of one individual
• Retrospective funding for work that has already started
• General circulars/appeals
• Proposals that solely concentrate on the purchasing of property, equipment or other capital items
• Overseas activities, including travel, expeditions, adventure and residential courses

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