Tuesday, 16 August 2022
This year, Motability, the Charity, is launching six new grant programmes, committing £50 million in funding over the next three financial years to organisations across the UK who can help address the challenges that disabled people face when accessing transport. The first four programmes -Community Transport, Wheelchair Sector, Active Travel and Research Grants, launched in April and June respectively. Motability is still actively encouraging charities and organisations to apply for funding for these programmes.
Motability has today announced the final two new programmes for the year – Travelling with Confidence and Reducing Barriers to Driving. These are two key areas where our research and insight has shown that providing grant funding to other charities and organisations will have a great impact, helping disabled people right now to make the journeys they want to, while Motability continues its research and innovation work into longer-term solutions to make all transport accessible.
Barry Le Grys, Chief Executive of Motability said: “We are thrilled to be launching our final two new grant programmes for this year. Motability has historically been known for providing grants to Scheme customers, and whilst that is still an important and core part of our work, we are incredibly excited to be using our charitable funds to help even more disabled people. So many fantastic charities and organisations are already doing so much to help to address the challenges disabled people face when accessing transport and through our new grant programmes we want to enable them to enhance the lives of even more disabled people. We strongly encourage any organisation or charity that may be eligible for funding to visit our website and apply”.
Travelling with Confidence Grant Programme
The new Travelling with Confidence Grant Programme can provide funding for Charities and organisations to help to alleviate the negative feelings and experiences currently felt by disabled people when making a journey via public transport. To ensure fair and transparent awarding of funding, each application will be assessed consistently against our criteria.
Examples of grant funding from this programme could include (but is not limited to):
- Grants to improve awareness of responsibilities and influence policy and practice in the transport sector.
- Funding to embed a user-led approach to inclusive design and delivery of transport services.
- Grants to scale, promote awareness of, and increase access to, travel training programmes that increase skills, knowledge, confidence, choice and control when travelling.
- Grants to support the development of accessible tools and technology solutions that support journey planning and in-journey navigation.
Charities and organisations can apply for grants from £100,000 to £1 million.
This programme launches on Tuesday 16 August 2022. For more information on how charities and organisations can apply for funding please visit our Travelling with Confidence Grant Programme website page.
Reducing Barriers to Driving Grant Programme
Through our new Reducing Barriers to Driving Grant Programme, we hope to help charities and organisations to improve and expand private transport options for disabled people and their families beyond the Motability Scheme. Examples of grant funding from this programme could include (but is not limited to):
- Funding to raise awareness of driving as an option, and of the support and adaptations that are available.
- Grants to expand the provision of driving and familiarisation lessons, and increase the number of instructors delivering lessons with adaptations.
- Funding to organisations to help reduce the cost barriers around access to vehicles and adaptations.
Charities and organisations can apply for grants from £100,000 to £2 million.
This programme launches on Tuesday 16 August 2022. For more information on how charities and organisations can apply for funding and for eligibility please visit our Reducing Barriers to Driving Grant Programme website page.