This long-term approach to grant funding is groundbreaking, especially for small charities like ARE. The trust and belief in our approach and expertise to build and strengthen Black, Asian and Mixed heritage-led charities working in the communities is vital to the sustainability and resilience of the sector.
Jeremy Crook, Chief Executive
A co-developed approach to organisational sustainability
In 2024, City Bridge Foundation committed to funding the UPLIFT programme through their Anchor Programme.
As one of the first recipients of this long-term funding, Action for Race Equality will deliver UPLIFT for the next decade, providing structured, co-design sessions, culturally relevant support and engagement to strengthen the sector.
It enables ARE to confidently plan in line with our strategy and vision and to continue to question, challenge and support the transformative change we need to see for a fairer, equitable and inclusive society.
About the programme
Many Black, Asian, and Mixed Heritage-led organisations play vital roles in addressing systemic inequalities, yet they often lack access to tailored support that matches their unique needs.
The UPLIFT programme bridges this gap, offering resources and guidance to build organisational sustainability, strengthen leadership, and amplify community impact. This 10-year programme is committed to advancing Black, Asian, and Mixed Heritage-led organisations to thrive and build sustainable futures.
The programme will be co-developed, to ensure it delivers tailored and culturally relevant capacity building support to promote sustainable organisational development. Through, peer learning, collaborative engagement, and personalised support, UPLIFT aims to create meaningful pathways to systemic change with expert-led support to strengthen leadership, improve governance, and accelerate strategic growth.
UPLIFT is designed with collaboration at its core. Consultations and co-design sessions will facilitate direct engagement directly with participating organisations to ensure the programme remains responsive, relevant, and impactful. By actively listening and adapting to their evolving needs, we aim to create meaningful and lasting change.
The first year of UPLIFT brought together 13 organisations to co‑design a programme responsive to the pressures facing community led groups. Learning from Cohort One has helped shape a clearer, stronger offer for Year Two.
We are now recruiting for our second UPLIFT cohort, find more details HERE. (Deadline: 15th June 2025)
ARE recognises that success looks different to every organisation.
Each cohort receives one year of fully funded support, contributing to a ten‑year programme that provides rare stability, shared learning and long‑term focus on resilient community‑led organisations across London.
Every new cohort of organisations will receive 21 hours of bespoke 1-to‑1 consultancy with experienced ARE Associates, expert led group learning workshops and Action learning and peer support.
The aim of UPLIFT is to equip organisations to be:
- More visible and confident in what they do and achieve.
- More present around ‘the tables’ that hold power, impacting policy design and decisions.
- Able to influence policy and genuine transformative change.
- Stronger with messaging and voice.
- More equipped with technical skills and improved organisation culture and efficiency.
- Able to lead with confidence, direction and integrity, by supporting the leaders.
How?
Over the 10 year period, ARE will UPLIFT 300 organisations.
Each new cohort of organisations will receive bespoke and intensive 12-months capacity-building and organisational development support.
Who is eligible? – as of May 2026
UPLIFT is a programme designed for organisations that are:
- Led by and for Black, Asian, or Mixed Heritage communities.
- London-based and actively serving local boroughs.
- Charities, social enterprises, CICs, or voluntary and community groups.
Eligible organisations must have operated for at least a year, with an annual income between £50,000 and £200,000.
We’re prioritising organisations whose work focuses on one or more of the following areas:
- Criminal Justice
- Employment
- Education
- Youth progammes
What will the programme feature?
- 21 hours of bespoke 1‑to‑1 consultancy with experienced ARE Associates.
- Expert led group learning workshops on priority areas such as:
- Governance and leadership
- Diversifying income and bid writing
- Communications and storytelling
- Monitoring, evaluation and impact
- Ethical and practical uses of AI
- Policy and influencing
- Action learning and peer support, creating a trusted space to share challenges and solutions.
- A co‑designed approach, ensuring the programme continues to reflect participant needs rather than a one‑size‑fits‑all model.
UPLIFT is designed to support organisations not just to survive, but to strengthen their influence, sustainability and voice within wider systems.
Why ARE?
Building on ARE’s long-standing experience in delivering organisational development and capacity-building initiatives, the UPLIFT programme is shaped and strengthened by the deep networks, insights, and expertise developed over the years.
Programme team
ARE Programme Manager – Nola Sterling
ARE Programme Director – Ellisha Coates
For further details, please contact Nola Sterling at nola@actionforraceequality.org.uk.
Kind thanks to the City Bridge Foundation, Anchor Programme who will be generously funding the UPLIFT Programme for 10 years from 2024.
