Windrush Compensation Advocacy Support Fund 2027-28

If you are applying in England, Scotland or WalesYou can apply if you are:  

•    An unincorporated charity or community organisation, a community interest company, or a company with a charitable purpose; or,  

•    A registered charity; or,  

•    A successful organisation or member of a consortium who received funding in WCASF Year 1 or 2; or,

•    A grassroots organisation  AND

•    An organisation with secure systems in place to ensure claimants data is securely stored, saved and destroyed (evidence of successful organisation’s privacy policy will be required); and,  

•    Based in the UK and are already providing a Windrush Compensation advocacy service within your community. You must demonstrate that you are a trusted member of your community. If you are applying in Northern Ireland

You can apply if you are:  

•    An unincorporated charity or community organisation, a community interest company, or a company with a charitable purpose; or,  

•    A registered charity; or,  

•    A successful organisation or an organisation who was a member of a consortium who received funding in WCASF Year 1 or 2; or,

•    A grassroots organisation  AND

•    An organisation with secure systems in place to ensure claimants data is securely stored, saved and destroyed (evidence of successful organisation’s privacy policy will be required); and,  

•    Based in the UK and are already providing an advocacy service within your community. You must demonstrate that you are a trusted member of your community. Unincorporated charities, community organisations, community interest companies and companies with a charitable purposeYou can apply if you:

•    Were established for charitable and public benefit purposes.

•    Have a governing body with at least 3 members.

•    Can provide a valid governing document for your organisation with a set of rules on how your organisation is structured and its purpose.

•    Can provide audited accounts for the most recent financial year, or, where audited accounts are not available, an income and expenditure statement for the most recent financial year, together with evidence that this has been approved by your governing body.Registered charitiesYou can apply if: 

•    You can provide a valid registration number issued by the Charity Commission.

•    Have a governing body with at least 3 members.

•    Can provide a valid governing document for your organisation with a set of rules on how your organisation is structured and its purpose.

•    Can provide audited accounts for the most recent financial year, or an income and expenditure statement where audited accounts have not yet been submitted, together with evidence that this has been approved by your governing body. Your details on the Charity Commission website will be checked as part of the assessment process. A successful organisation or an organisation who was a member of a consortium who received funding in WCASF Year 1 or 2.You can apply if: 

•    You can provide the required documents corresponding to your organisation type.Grassroots organisationsYou can apply if you can support your application with:

•    A governing document for your organisation with a set of rules on how your organisation is structured and its purpose.

•    A copy of your most recent accounts and current bank statement (dated within the last two months) and projected cashflow statement for your next financial year, together with evidence that this has been approved by your governing body. Where accounts are not available, an income and expenditure statement for the most recent financial year together with current bank statement (dated within the last two months) and projected cashflow statement for your next financial year, together with evidence that this has been approved by your governing body.Regional Split of the UKThe UK has been divided into ten regions for this competition. Northern Ireland has been further divided into six sub-regions. Applicants must submit bids for the region(s) where they intend to deliver advocacy services. Successful Applicants will be responsible for providing Advocacy Support across the entire region(s) or sub-region(s) awarded to them, not just in their immediate locality. To support with delivery, the Authority recommends that organisations deliver pop-up hubs across the region or sub-region to help with reaching as many people as possible within the region. 

Organisations may submit bids for multiple regions, as there is no restriction on the number of regions or sub-regions an Applicant can apply for.

Organisations bidding for more than one region or sub-region must indicate their preference on their application form. Where the organisation bids for more than one region or sub-region and the bids are the same, this must be done on one application. The organisation must identify on their application which regions or sub-regions they are applying for and include the proposed delivery plan and funding requirements for each region/sub-region. Where an organisation bids for more than one region or sub-region but is applying for different amounts of funding per region/sub-region, then separate funding toolkits must be submitted for each region/sub-region. Where an organisation bids for more than one region or sub-region and the bids are materially different, a separate application (including separate funding toolkits) must be submitted for each region/sub-region. Award caps apply for each region you bid for, not for the organisation as a whole. This means an organisation that bids for more than one region may receive (if successful) more than the maximum amount stated, if you combined the awards based on the bid and being successful for more than one region. Organisations may receive funding for multiple regions, if successful. When ranking the applications after moderation, the Applicants with the highest ranked successful application per region will be awarded the funding. This process will continue until a minimum of one organisation per region has been funded. 

If a region receives no Applications or the Application(s) received, scores less than 60 for any scored question or 0 on the funding tool kit, (which will result in the application being unsuccessful) then an additional award will be made to the highest ranked organisation that has not yet been awarded funding, based on ranking against the scoring criteria. This process will continue until the total funding amount is distributed. This means there may be regions where no organisations are awarded funding. 

This regional structure applies only to this competition and has been organised by the WCASF Project Team, using ceremonial counties as a guide. Please see Annex A.

The UK has been divided into the following regions:

1.    Scotland

2.    Wales

3.    Northwest, England, including Isle of Man

4.    Northeast, England

5.    Yorkshire & Humber, England

6.    East Midlands, England

7.    West Midlands, England

8.    Outer London and Southwest, England

9.    Inner London and Southeast, England

10.    Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland Sub-RegionsNorthern Ireland region has been further divided into the following sub-regions:

10a. Antrim

10b. Armagh

10c. Down

10d. Fermanagh

10e. Londonderry

10f. Tyrone

The Windrush Compensation Advocacy Support Fund (WCASF), as announced in the Home Secretary’s Written Ministerial Statement (WMS), will provide funding to organisations to offer advocacy and support with the WCS application process, including acceptance and reviews.

Advocates must have an understanding of the claimants’ culture and background and will support them to articulate their story, with the aim of submitting a viable and eligible application and/or supporting with acceptance and review paperwork. The support will include practical help with information and evidence gathering.

Advocates must establish a trusting and positive relationship, ensuring claimants feel safe, supported, and able to provide their account in an environment where they are comfortable and at ease. 

Where appropriate, advocates will signpost claimants to external organisations for additional assistance, for example where health or wellbeing is a concern.

The WCASF looks to provide additional support to WCS claimants, keeping them at the heart of what we do. The grant funding aims to build trust in the Home Office, ensure WCS claimants feel supported through the application process, providing their account to impartial members of the community. Our focus is enabling support that goes further than assistance already available, adding value for individuals using advocates that claimants recognise from within local communities.

This aims to ensure claimants feel more comfortable, empowering them to share their trauma and tell their story, ultimately providing the WCS with a comprehensive account of their lived experiences, in a comprehensive application or with support at acceptance and review stage.

By delivering meaningful and focussed support in a more accessible way we will build greater public trust in the Scheme and the work of the Home Office.

Please note that the table below is an indicative activity timeline that is subject to change. This table provides key milestones and activity Dates and windows. 

Competition Application Window 

9th November 2026 to 4th December 2026

Information Sessions

17th November 2026 & 19th November 2026

Clarification Question Period

9th November 2026 to 25 November 2026

Application Evaluation, Moderation and Due Diligence

4th January 2027 to 26th February 2027

Notify Applicants of the outcome of their application

From 1st March 2027

Issue Grant Agreements

From 1st March 2027

Grant Agreement Signature

20th March 2027

Grant Start Date

1st April 2027

Please use the links to the documents listed below in the "Supporting Information Section" which should be downloaded to assist with the application process.

1. Guidance for Applicants

2. FAQ - Competition Launch

3. Draft Grant Agreement

4. Application Form

5a. Funding toolkit England, Scotland and Wales

5b. Funding toolkit Northern Ireland Only

6. Applicant Clarification Question Submission Template

7. Find a Grant - Guide for Applicants

8.  Code of Conduct for Grant Recipients v.1.01

It is important that Applicants read all of the documents before completing their application, and fully understand what is required as part of the application process.  The Authority expects grant activities to commence in April 2027 once the Grant Agreement has been signed.Information sessions will be held for organisations who are interested to learn more about the Fund and how to submit an application. These virtual sessions will be held on 17 November  2026 at 10:00am and 19 November at  13.00pm. The presentation will be available to all applicants after the final session.

Please find the following links / documents which should be downloaded to assist with the application process. 

1. Guidance for Applicants

2. FAQ - Competition Launch

3. Draft Grant Agreement

4. Application Form

5a. Funding toolkit England, Scotland and Wales

5b. Funding toolkit Northern Ireland Only

6. Applicant Clarification Question Submission Template

7. Find a Grant - Guide for Applicants

8. Code of Conduct for Grant Recipients v.1.01

How and when to apply 

1. The Windrush Compensation Advocacy Support Fund Scheme is being managed via the Government Grants Management Function (GGMF) online application platform ‘Find a Grant’ Home -  Find a grant (find-government-grants.service.gov.uk)

2. Find a Grant is a single place for individuals and organisations to find and apply for general government grants.

3. Find a Grant has been designed to: 

• publicise grants in one place with equal and fair access for all;

• enable the finding of government grants by browsing, searching and filtering; and

• offer applicants opt-in notifications for individual grants, customised saved searches or general service updates when new grants are added every week.

4. To apply, you will need to access the 2027/2028 Windrush Compensation Advocacy Support Fund via the ‘Find A Grant’ advert providing the information as requested.

5. The application pack includes an online Application Form, this Guidance for Applicants document, a 2027/28 FAQ, and the draft Grant Agreement. 

6. All applications must be submitted in English via the Find a Grant Platform (the Platform). 

7. The WCASF is now open for online Applications. The deadline for submitting completed applications is 5pm 04/12/2026. You should receive a system generated acknowledgement of your application immediately following submission. If an acknowledgment is not received, please check the portal to ensure that the application has been submitted. 

8. The Authority cannot consider Applications that have not been submitted correctly and by the deadline set.

9. Applicants may wish to familiarise themselves with the Guide to the Platform document which can be found in the Supporting Documents section on the Find A Grant Platform. This is a simple user guide for the Platform.

10. Applicants are strongly urged to ensure they retain an offline copy of any details they add or upload to the online Application via the Platform. This will help protect against any loss of data. Applicants should familiarise themselves with using the Platform before they submit their response. 

11. Please note any attachments requested must be submitted with the question number clearly marked. 

12. Applications can be modified in the Platform at any time up to submission of the application. Once you have submitted your application, you will be unable to make any amendments.

13. Applications will be acknowledged automatically via the Platform.

14. A compliant Application must:

• reach the Authority no later than the submission deadline.

• include a fully completed and compliant Application submitted via the Platform (including all requested attachments, Appendices, declarations etc). 

• confirm acceptance of the proposed Grant Agreement. 

• ensure any attachment uploaded is free from viruses, and capable of being opened in the format stated. Any attachment that cannot be opened because of a virus may be classified as non-compliant, subsequently rejected and lead to no award being made.