Guidance

Changing Futures Lived Experience Support Grant: prospectus

Updated 30 March 2026

Applies to England

Grant summary

This grant will fund a national lived experience provider to work with partners and the central government team to strengthen cross-area learning, and ensure lived experience plays a central role in program design, delivery and system change both locally and nationally to improve services for people experiencing multiple disadvantage.

Type of grant

Competed

Who can apply

Voluntary, community, and faith sector organisations (VCFS) in England that have at least 3 years experience of working within, or supporting, the multiple disadvantage landscape, specifically to embed lived experience in operational and strategic systems. This includes experience of applying co-production principles, supporting people with lived experience to shape services and policy, and delivering and coordinating lived experience activity at a national level. For further information, please see the eligibility criteria below.

Funding available

Up to £750,000 of revenue funding is available over 3 years. The funding equates to around £250,000 per year on average across the funding period, with the final annual profile subject to the agreed start date. The available funding is indicative and may vary depending on the strength of applications and the overall budget available.

Important dates

Applications open: 30 March 2026

Deadline for applications: 21 April 2026 at 2pm  

Assessments: April 2026

Moderation: May 2026

Notifying outcomes of grant competition: May 2026

Grant funding agreements issued: June 2026

First grant payment issued: July 2026

Please note that funding for Year 1 will not be released until July or August 2026 pending submission of a Grant Claim Form. Any funding awarded for Years 2 and 3 will be made available from May 2027 and May 2028, respectively. 

Applications will open for this fund on 30 March 2026. 

Contact us 

If you have any questions, please refer to our Frequently Asked Questions or contact us at cfp@communities.gov.uk.

Introduction

Changing Futures is a £55.8 million cross-government programme that builds on the learning from the first phase of Changing Futures, which was delivered over 5-years in 15 areas. The programme demonstrated the value of a place-based, whole systems approach in improving outcomes for people experiencing multiple disadvantage and reducing repeat demand on public services.   

The next phase of Changing Futures targets 18 of the most deprived upper-tier areas across England, comprising a mix of areas from the first phase of the programme and new areas. This phase aims to build on existing learning by providing a stronger framework and guidance to help areas go further on systems change.   

 The grant competition will appoint one lived experience provider to play a critical role in supporting delivery across the next phase of the programme. The provider will be expected to work with local authority-led partnerships at different stages of system maturity, tailoring support accordingly, and supporting shared learning across areas.   

The lived experience provider will work closely with the learning and support provider (funded through a separate grant) to maintain a coherent national offer and ensure lived experience continues to play a central role in programme design, local delivery and systems change. This will be through 2 interlinked strands of work:  

1.  providing advice, support and guidance to local partnerships, specifically local leads who have responsibility for lived experience in their areas, and  
2. establishing mechanisms for bringing lived experience into the national programme and related policy.  

In this way, the provider will work closely with the central government team, which may include third-party research partners, to ensure people with lived experience directly influence and inform national multiple disadvantage policy, as well as programme development and evaluation.  

We encourage applicants to consider how their proposals will support effective coordination, clear communication, and targeted, purposeful activity that is responsive to local need and avoids placing unnecessary burden on areas.    

The provider should expect to deliver a mix of support approaches, including significant targeted in-person engagement, recognising that some areas, particularly those newer to this work, may require more intensive support at certain points. Applicants should therefore consider travel, regionality and capacity to work alongside areas on the ground as part of their delivery approach.   

Where activity is delivered online, applicants should demonstrate how they will ensure accessibility and inclusion, recognising that digital access and confidence may vary across partners and participants. Proposals should show how activity will be clearly communicated, well signposted and coordinated to avoid duplication or overburdening areas.

Grant objectives

The lived experience provider will be expected to work with the programme’s evaluation and wider learning activity. This may include supporting opportunities for people with lived experience to contribute to evaluation activity, for example through the use of trained peer researchers that support engagement with beneficiaries in qualitative insight gathering.

1. Embed meaningful involvement of lived experience in the design and delivery of the Changing Futures programme at both local and national levels.

2. Support and develop lived experience leadership across the multiple disadvantage landscape, at both local and national level.

3. Strengthen local participation infrastructure so lived experience informs programme design and wider system influence, such as governance and commissioning

4. Integrate lived experience into delivery and systems change across Changing Futures areas, working closely with the national learning and support provider

5. Ensure lived experience informs the design, delivery and evaluation of the national Changing Futures programme and wider multiple disadvantage policy across government

6. Work with the learning and support provider to capture, synthesise and disseminate learning from lived experience participation and co-production activity to inform local practice and national policy development through reciprocal engagement

7. Develop and co-ordinate a mutual mentoring scheme between people with lived experience and policy makers at local, regional and national levels ensuring both parties benefit from the relationship. The lived experience provider will play the central convening role in supporting delivery of these objectives, and ensuring lived experience is at the heart of programme delivery and driving wider local and national influence. They will need to support areas to consider the skills development and progression of the individuals with lived experience involved in the programme, and how lived experience input is embedded more sustainably in local systems over time.

The lived experience provider will also be expected to work within the emerging Multiple Disadvantage System Maturity Framework being developed through the Changing Futures programme. The framework is intended to support local authority-led partnerships to understand and reflect on their progress in developing mature, whole-systems approaches to multiple disadvantage, based on learning from Changing Futures and predecessor programmes. In particular, the provider will support areas to strengthen the lived experience and co-production elements of the framework, helping partnerships embed meaningful participation of lived experience within system design, decision making and service improvement. This will inform how they prioritise resource and focus throughout the programme and is likely to influence the issues areas require support with. Maturity themes are expected to be Leadership & Governance, Data & Insight, Lived Experience & Co-production, Workforce, Funding & Commissioning, and Coordinated Support.   

We encourage providers to consider how their proposed lived experience offer would be tailored to partnerships at different stages of system maturity, focusing on providing the right type and intensity of support at the right time rather than a one-size-fits all approach. We are also interested in how providers would manage the dynamics of relationships and participation in a programme network where many of the members have existing, close relationships with each other and the national team as well as extensive Changing Futures experience, while others are completely new to the programme. Moreover, some members of the Changing Futures network will no longer be receiving funding and will therefore be receiving a less intensive offer. We want the provider to create safe, inclusive and welcoming spaces where people with lived experience, local partnerships and wider programme stakeholders can participate meaningfully, build confidence and contribute to systems change.

Who can apply

To apply for this grant, your organisation must be a voluntary, community or faith sector (VCFS) organisation, operating in England, and established for charitable, benevolent or philanthropic purposes. You can apply if your organisation is one of the following:

• a Company limited by guarantee registered with Companies House
• a Charity registered with the Charity Commission or recognised as an exempt charity
• a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) registered with Companies House and with the Charity Commission
• a Community Interest Company (CIC) registered with Companies House
• A Community Benefit Society (CBS) or Co-operative Society registered with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
• a Parochial Church Council (PCC)

You cannot apply if you are:

• an individual
• a sole trader, partnership, or for-profit company
• an unincorporated or informal group
• a public sector organisation (such as a statutory body, local authority, school, college, university, educational trust, MAT, museum or NHS body etc)
• not registered with the appropriate regulator for your organisation type
• an organisation primarily engaged in political activity

In addition to being the type of organisation listed in the eligibility criteria above you must as part of your application submission:

• demonstrate that the grant aligns with the organisation’s core purpose, complements the wider multiple disadvantage system, supporting change, learning and improvement at local and national levels

• demonstrate a minimum of 3 years’ experience of working within, or supporting, the multiple disadvantage landscape. This includes experience of applying co-production principles, supporting people with lived experience to shape services and policy, and delivering and coordinating lived experience activity at a national level.

• demonstrate an understanding of the policy and delivery context for multiple disadvantage and an ability to keep lived experience offers under review as policy, evidence and local practice evolve.

• demonstrate experience of organising interactive in person learning events and facilitating stakeholder workshops, action learning sets and mentoring schemes.

• operate in England

The eligibility lists are not exhaustive. Clarification should be sought from MHCLG if a potential applicant believes that the status of their organisation is not listed

As part of our standard processes, we will conduct full due diligence checks on applicants before any funding is confirmed.

Organisations may submit only one application. If an organisation makes multiple applications, then we will assess the first one that is submitted. Please note that once an application has been submitted, it cannot be withdrawn and will be regarded as your only submission

The full scoring and assessment process is set out in the “Changing Futures Lived Experience grant: Scoring Framework” document which details the criteria that will be used to assess all eligible applications

Funding available

Eligible organisations will be able to apply for up to £750,000 of revenue funding over 3 years. The funding equates to around £250,000 per year on average across the funding period, with the final annual profile subject to the agreed start date.

Funding schedule and requirements

Funding will be issued to successful grant recipients annually, so it is essential that your cost schedule accurately reflects your funding needs for each year of the programme.

Annual funding timeline

All funding is subject to MHCLG officials having confidence of delivery outlined in the application and the signing of a Grant Funding Agreement (GFA). MHCLG reserves the right to hold an initiation project meeting with any grantee prior to this signing the GFA.

Year 1 Funding

Available to claim from June/July 2026, with payment of grant from 1 July.

Year 2 Funding

Payments are released in May 2027, subject to satisfactory performance.

Year 3 Funding

Payments are released in May 2028, subject to satisfactory performance.

Revenue

Revenue grant can be used to fund:

• expenses and appropriate renumeration for people with lived experience involved in programme activity
• project activities
• running costs including hire of premises and utilities
• equipment
• organisational development (e.g. workforce capability and capacity)
• contribution to the organisation’s overheads

This grant cannot be used to fund:

• activities of a political or exclusively religious nature.
• lobbying or activity intended to influence or attempt to influence Parliament, government or political parties
• delivery of applicant led conferences, summits or large-scale events that primarily serve to promote or showcase the organisation’s own work.
• using grant funding to petition for additional funding
• input VAT reclaimable by you from HMRC
• goods or services that you have a statutory duty to provide.
• payments reimbursed or to be reimbursed by other public or private sector grants
• contributions in kind (i.e. a contribution in goods or services, as opposed to money).
• depreciation, amortisation or impairment of fixed assets by you
• interest payments (including service charge payments for finance leases).
• gifts to individuals and promotional items
• entertaining (entertaining for this purpose means anything that would be a taxable benefit to the person being entertained, according to current UK tax regulations).
• statutory fines, criminal fines or penalties
• costs incurred before the issue of a funding agreement unless agreed in writing by us.
• temporary sleeping structures
• shared/communal sleeping facilities of any kind

VAT

• the grant we offer will be a maximum and so you should ensure all relevant costs are included. If your organisation is not VAT registered, you should include all of your VAT in your project costs. If you are VAT registered, only include the portion of VAT that is non-recoverable

Governance, monitoring and performance management

Governance

• the Lived Experience Grant will be managed as a grant by the Changing Futures delivery team within the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping (HRS) Directorate at MHCLG

• successful applicants will be issued a legally binding Grant Funding Agreement (GFA).

• grantees will be required to provide an annual Statement of Grant Usage (SGU) which must be signed by the organisation’s Chief Finance Officer (CFO) or equivalent senior financial officer

Monitoring

• organisations should expect to submit data and narrative reports detailing how funding has been used, progress against objectives, and outcomes achieved

• organisations will be expected to cooperate with any external evaluation commissioned by the department, which may include surveys, interviews, or site visits

• further details on monitoring and evaluation requirements will be provided to successful bidders in due course

Performance management

• appropriate performance measures will be agreed with the successful applicant, reflecting the learning, support, co-production and improvement focus of the role

• these will focus on delivery milestones, outcomes and learning, rather than prescriptive activity targets, and will be proportionate to the nature of the support provided and be informed by feedback from stakeholders

• full details of the agreed performance measures will be set out in the funding agreement

Assessment criteria

Your application will be assessed in 3 parts:

• eligibility (Pass or Fail)
• evaluation (scored)
• declaration (Pass or Fail)

Refer to the Changing Futures Lived Experience Grant: Scoring Framework document for the full details on how bids will be assessed and scored, including the complete list of questions you must respond to and any documents you will be required to upload in the Apply for a Grant portal.

Full details, including how to apply, are available on GOV.UK.

In summary:

Part 1: Eligibility and your organisation (Pass or Fail)

The eligibility check will be applied to all applications received by the closing date. This section will confirm if your organisation meets the eligibility criteria. Please refer to the prospectus for full details on eligibility criteria.

Part 2: Evaluation (scored)

Applications will be assessed by MHCLG against the criteria set out in the Changing Futures Lived Experience Grant: Scoring Framework document (TBC). This will consider the extent to which proposals demonstrate the capability, approach and value required to deliver the learning and support role set out in this prospectus.

Each criterion will be scored on a scale from 0 to 3, where:

• 0 = no or unclear response
• 1 = limited response with insufficient detail or evidence
• 2 = clear response with some supporting evidence
• 3 = strong, well-evidenced response demonstrating a high level of confidence in delivery

Scores across all criteria will be combined to produce an overall score.

Any application scoring 0 on any criterion will not be eligible for funding, and scoring will not proceed further.

The assessment will focus on 5 key areas:

1. Skills and experience

This section is weighted at 25% and the maximum score is 75.

There are 3 questions in this section, with a 300-word limit for each response.

We will ask you to demonstrate:

• experience of working with people experiencing multiple disadvantage at a comparable scale and complexity
• capability to deliver lived experience leadership, participation and co-production
• skills and capacity to provide safe, trauma-informed support, including appropriate supervision, safeguarding and ethical engagement
• relevant subject-matter expertise, including influencing policy and practice and working with public sector partners

2. Understanding of the programme and objectives

This section is weighted at 15% and the maximum score is 45.

There are 3 questions in this section, with a 300-word limit for each response.

We will ask you to demonstrate:

• a clear understanding of the programme’s context, objectives and priorities

• the role and value of lived experience within the programme

• how your approach will respond to areas at different stages of maturity, including transition from existing arrangements

• how you will support meaningful involvement of people with lived experience in local systems and programme activity

3. Approach to delivery, learning and impact

This section is weighted at 35% and the maximum score is 105.

There are 3 questions in this section, with a 300-word limit for each response.

We will ask you to demonstrate:

• a clear and credible approach to delivering lived experience leadership, participation and co-production across the programme

• how you will support areas to engage people with lived experience safely and effectively

• how learning from lived experience participation will be captured, synthesised and shared across the programme

• how your approach will contribute to improvements in local practice and inform wider national policy development

4. Deliverability and risk management

This section is weighted at 15% and the maximum score is 45.

There are 2 questions in this section, with a 300-word limit for each response.

We will ask you to demonstrate:

• how your approach will be mobilised and managed effectively
• governance and delivery arrangements, including oversight and accountability
• identification and mitigation of key delivery risks
• how activity will remain aligned with programme objectives and contribute to wider sector learning

5. Cost and value for money

This section is weighted at 10% and the maximum score is 30.

You will be asked to submit an itemised budget.

We will ask you to demonstrate:

• a clear, proportionate and well-justified budget
• how costs are appropriately itemised and linked to proposed activities
• that costs relating to lived experience activity (e.g. support, supervision, accessibility and participation) are reasonable and accessible
• how the proposal represents good value for money

Part 3: Declarations and confirmations (Pass or Fail)

You will need to:

• confirm that your organisation has a UK bank account associated with it

• agree to reporting requirements that will be issued in your grant funding agreements

• confirm the information you provide in the application is accurate to the best of your knowledge

• confirm you have at least 3 years of relevant experience

Please note:

• MHCLG can apply additional factors when considering the short list in order to select the final list for funding
• bidders should be aware that their application should not be seen as a full and final offer, MHCLG reserves the right to negotiate and amend bids accordingly with successful applicants
• MHCLG and its Ministers reserve the right to amend or vary the conditions set out in this prospectus, and further reserve the right to withhold or decline to make any award, where such action is considered necessary and appropriate

Definitions

Term	Definition
Multiple disadvantage	Defined as combinations of homelessness, mental ill health, addiction, domestic abuse, and contact with the criminal justice system - is associated with very poor outcomes and extreme, predictable repeat demand across public services.
Delivery partners	Organisations or individuals involved in delivering aspects of the learning and support activity, where applicable
Learning and support provider	The organisation funded to deliver learning, support and improvement activity across the programme, as set out in this prospectus
Lived experience	Direct, personal experience of multiple disadvantage used to inform, shape or influence policy, service design, delivery or learning
Outputs	The tangible activities or products delivered through the learning and support role, such as events, resources, guidance or tools
Outcomes	The changes or benefits that result from the programme, including improvements in ways of working, capability, practice or system responses
Grant Funding Agreement	A grant funding agreement is a formal legal document between a funder (grantor) and a recipient (grantee) that defines the terms, conditions, scope, and objectives for using awarded funds.
Heads of terms	Document summarising the main commercial terms of a proposed agreement between parties.

Roles and responsibilities

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will:

• assess applications against the assessment criteria
• undertake due diligence
• determine the allocation of funding based on the assessment criteria
• notify applicants of assessment decisions
• establish Grant Funding Agreements with the preferred applicants
• provide funding as agreed in the Grant Funding Agreement
• establish and undertake a monitoring and evaluation regime for the duration of the project

If successful, you must:

• provide evidence of costs, when requested
• put in place delivery processes
• oversee delivery and contractors
• be accountable for delivery
• sign a Grant Funding Agreement
• take part in monitoring and evaluation
• comply with the Subsidy Control Act 2022
• comply with the Equality Act 2010
• be responsible for providing the scheme in accordance with the UK’s international obligations in respect of subsidies

Unsuccessful applicants may request to see their scores and a reason for the application outcome, but we will not provide any further feedback.

Applications will open for this fund on 30 March 2026.

Full details, including how to apply, are available on GOV.UK.

Contact us

If you have any questions, please refer to our Frequently Asked Questions or contact us at cfp@communities.gov.uk.