* Applications to the 2026 Small Grants programme have now closed. Check back in early December to find out about funding available to support events as part of the 2027 Festival.
What is the Refugee Festival Scotland Small Grants programme?
The Refugee Festival Scotland Small Grants programme aims to help celebrate and highlight the contribution that refugee communities make to life in Scotland, while promoting and strengthening partnerships and connections.
Funding is awarded by Scottish Refugee Council to enable grassroots groups and organisations to take part in Refugee Festival Scotland by helping them cover the cost of running events.
Who can apply for this funding?
This programme is aimed to support constituted community groups and small third sector organisations* that are led by refugees or focused on assisting refugee communities (*with £150k or less as your maximum annual turnover).
Your group or organisation can be located anywhere in Scotland.
We can accept applications from larger organisations (i.e. with an annual turnover of over 150k), if they are presenting a project that has been jointly developed with a refugee group.
Please only send 1 application per applicant.
Applications from individuals will not be considered.
How much can my organisation apply for?
Your organisation can apply for a grant of up to £750 to help deliver arts and cultural events as part of Refugee Festival Scotland.
What types of events and activities does the funding cover?
You can apply for a Small Grant to help you run all kinds of events and activities as part of Refugee Festival Scotland.
Any event is welcome, from art, film, music, dance and discussion to sport, storytelling, theatre, cookery demonstrations, creative workshops, community-get-togethers and family-friendly picnics. You can have a look at previous festival events to see the range of what is possible!
How competitive is the programme?
- The Scotland-wide programme has been running for 7 years and has become more and more popular
- In 2025 we had 104 applications and were able to fund 70 projects
- In 2026, we will be able to fund 50 different projects
- Due to popularity of this fund, please only send 1 application per group/organisation
- You are welcome to collaborate with partners, where you each put in a separate funding application to support different elements of a project that would be delivered in partnership – but due to the high levels of competition for funding, we cannot guarantee each partner would be successful in their applications, so it could be helpful to consider this in your planning.
Funding criteria
To qualify for funding, your event must:
- Take place in Scotland between 12 – 21 June 2026
- Be open to the public and be either free or ticketed on a sliding scale, with a free entry option for New Scots
- Meaningfully involve refugees and/or people seeking asylum in the planning, design and delivery
- Bring communities together to celebrate refugee arts and culture
- Help people from different backgrounds to connect and build understanding, solidarity and friendship
Your application must demonstrate:
- How refugees and/or people seeking asylum have been meaningfully involved in the planning and design of your event, and how they will be involved in the delivery.
- The intended lasting benefits of your event i.e. how will it help your community after the event e.g. help different people meet and make connections, improve participants confidence etc.
- We can only fund groups and organisations that have a bank account. If you do not have a bank account, consider applying in partnership with an organisation that does.
What guidance is there to help me apply?
We will be running two online info sessions about the Small Grants programme.
These will take place on:
- Tuesday 27 January 2026 11am-12.30pm – Book here.
- Monday 2 February 2026 3.30-5pm – Book here.
If you can’t make these, please email us at festival@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk and we can share the Info Session notes with you.
We can help you with language support on request. Email festival@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk to arrange this, and please allow at least two week’s notice.
For any other access requests please also contact us on festival@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk
How can my organisation or group apply?
- Complete an online application form
To apply for funding through the Refugee Festival Scotland Small Grants Fund, you must complete an online application form.
You might find it useful to download the full list of questions so you can draft your answers before beginning your online application.
Download the application questions here.
- Complete a budget
You also need to download and complete a budget sheet, showing how you will spend the funds. You will be asked to upload this as part of your application.
The deadline for applications is 12 noon on Tuesday, 24 February.
We may contact your group or organisation to discuss your application, so please ensure you provide contact details for the best person for us to contact.
What happens after I apply?
- Your application will get reviewed by impartial volunteer panelists and a selection of Scottish Refugee Council staff over the first three weeks in March.
- You’ll hear back about your application by the end of March.