Charity Funds
The Royal Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh Community Grants Fund
The Royal Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh's original purpose was to protect trading rights in the City of Edinburgh. It was established over 300 years ago and continues to support communities in Edinburgh and the Lothians through their charitable giving.
About this fund
Before you apply for this fund, read our application criteria first - you can find this here.
The Royal Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh Community Grants Fund is an extension of their charitable work and aims to support not-for-profit organisations working in the following themes:
• Social needs
• Youth
• Elderly
• Education
• Environmental
• Social Enterprise
• Healthcare
• Sport
• Culture and the Arts
Purpose of this fund
The Royal Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh are investing up to £25,000 per round through the Community Grants Fund into supporting groups and organisations primarily located in Edinburgh City, Midlothian, East Lothian, or West Lothian and who are working across one or more of the listed themes. While equality and diversity is not a listed theme, it is expected that this will be an overarching consequence. Projects should be of general benefit to Edinburgh and the Lothians and the economic environment with priority given to projects where the funding will be a real needle mover. Applications are invited for grants up to £5,000.
The programme will open for applications twice each year.
Who can apply
- Registered charities
- Constituted voluntary and community organisations
- Community companies e.g. companies limited by guarantee, community benefit societies or Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisations’
- Community Interest Companies are eligible to apply if they meet the Fund’s minimum governance standards
All applicants must meet Foundation Scotland's funding criteria, which you can find on our Help for applicants page.
What we can't fund
At Foundation Scotland we have some standard exclusions that apply to all funds. Before progressing with your application, read more about what can't be funded on our Help for Applicants page.
In addition, for The Royal Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh Community Grants Fund, we cannot process applications for:
- Groups with an income of over £500,000 in the last financial year
- Groups who do not have charitable aims
- Groups who are not primarily located in Edinburgh City, Midlothian, East Lothian or West Lothian
- Core salary costs or overhead costs unless a proportion is directly related to the project
- Purchase of second hand vehicles
- Groups that have previously received a grant must wait at least 18 months from the date of award before submitting a new application.
How decisions are made
Funding decisions are recommended by The Royal Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh Committee Panel with final approval from the Endowments Trust Committee, supported by Foundation Scotland. Decision meetings will take place in June and December each year.
How to apply
Applications submitted by 14th August 2026 can expect a decision by the end of December 2026. Please ensure your application and supporting documents are submitted by the application deadline.
If you would like to review the questions you will be asked to answer before starting the form, you can see them here.
If you have already started an application form and have not completed it, please login here to resume.