What is the North London Community Fund?
As set out in our Waste Prevention Plan, North London Waste Authority established the North London Community Fund (NLCF) to support waste prevention initiatives in the north London area. The fund provides community-based (non-profit-making) organisations the opportunity to apply for grants of up to a total value of £250,000. Along with the annual funding, we offer communications support and guidance from our officers throughout the delivery of projects.
The funding on offer is split into two stages providing small, medium, and large sized awards to community organisations across the seven north London boroughs: Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Hackney, Haringey, Islington, and Waltham Forest. The small and medium awards provide grants up to a total value of £150,000 and the large awards provide grants up to a total value of £200,000.
Small and medium awards
The small and medium awards are for projects which will deliver over the course of one year.
- Small awards are for projects up to the value of £5,000.
- Medium awards are projects which are more than £5,000 and up to the value of £15,000.
The application process for 2025-26 has now closed and applications are in the process of being evaluated.
Large awards
The large awards are for projects which will deliver over the course of two years with a maximum of two organisations receiving funding. Large awards are for projects up to the value of £100,000.
Applications for the 24/26 large awards have now closed, please see our press release for details on the two organisations who were awarded funding.
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What do our recipients say?
Arachne Greek Cypriot Women’s Group (Arachne) offer welfare advice, support and workshops to vulnerable women living in Islington. Arachne received funding in 2024 to provide residents with the opportunity to learn how to upcycle and mend their clothes and other textiles.
Arachne delivered 24 workshops, upskilling 30 residents with the skills to mend not replace their clothes and textiles. Not only did the funding allow Arachne to put on these workshops for residents free of charge, but the organisation was also able to develop a promotional campaign so more residents can find them in the future. The project was promoted on Hellenic TV and signposted on local websites.
Chrystalla, one of the project leads, said of NLWA: “they are always there to support and give ideas”
This support allowed the organisation to focus on the residents. Tai, an attendee of the sewing workshops at Arachne said: the workshops “keep our minds busy while learning new skills and creative ways to repair old clothes” “By learning to make the most of what I already have, I feel empowered to reduce waste and give new life to items that would otherwise be discarded.”

