Holocaust Memorial Day funding

Holocaust Memorial Day takes place on the 27 January each year.  The day is the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi death camp, by allied troops.  It is a day to remember the six million people murdered during the Holocaust and the millions of others who lost their lives under Nazi persecution and in the genocides that followed. 

Since 2015 Newcastle City Council have offered organisations the opportunity to apply for grant funding from the Newcastle Holocaust Memorial Day Fund to help deliver the city's Holocaust Memorial Day programme.  

In 2020 and 2021, due to the COVID pandemic, we needed to change the way the programme was delivered. Most activities were moved online with less people able to attend any remaining in-person events.  Some of these changes were beneficial. More people were able to take part online and we reached more audiences than ever before. 

In 2023 and 2024, our Holocaust Memorial Day programme included events and activities that were in-person, online and a mix of the two. This approach allows more people to take part in Holocaust Memorial Day activities and we would like our 2025 programme to include a similar range of projects. 

Groups and organisations can apply for grants of up to £1,500 to help deliver Newcastle’s Holocaust Memorial Day programme in 2025.  

The deadline for applications is 5pm on Friday 27 September 2024.

You can find more information about Holocaust Memorial Day in Newcastle and see examples of previous projects here. 

• Funding criteria
• Application process

Funding criteria

The theme for Holocaust Memorial Day 2025 is For a Better Future.  All projects will need to relate to the theme.  The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust have created a theme, vision and other resources that reflect the theme of For a Better Future.  You might find these helpful when you are developing your project. You can find out more about For a Better Future and why it is so important at https://www.hmd.org.uk/what-is-holocaust-memorial-day/this-years-theme/

Applications are invited for grants of up to £1,500 from organisations who would like to contribute to the Holocaust Memorial Day programme 2024. We welcome ideas that can be delivered online, in-person or a mix of both (hybrid). Although there are currently no COVID-19 restrictions, if there are changes, we will need to follow government guidance.

When deciding if an activity should be online, in person or both the question we need to think about is ‘how can we reach and engage the greatest number of people in the city most effectively and in the safest way?’ We are also keen to connect with our local communities and engage as many people as possible

What we will fund

The aim of Newcastle Holocaust Memorial Day Fund is to support the development and delivery of activities which:

• Commemorate those who were persecuted and or killed during the Holocaust or other genocides;
• Improve understanding and increase awareness of the Holocaust and other genocides and their victims, particularly amongst children and young people;
• Engage the interest of an increased number and broader cross section of Newcastle residents in understanding the Holocaust and other genocides;
• Encourage appropriate opposition to behaviours and attitudes that characterise discrimination and victimisation of all kinds and the Holocaust and other genocides in particular; 
• Recognise and celebrate the courage and suffering of survivors.

We are inviting applications for activities which:

• Address one or more of the aims of the Newcastle Holocaust Memorial Day Fund as set out above;
• Have a direct and clear link with the Holocaust or other genocides;
• Are available and accessible to the public in person, online or both;
• Are developed and delivered by not-for-profit organisations that are legally constituted and have a suitable bank account; 
• Are commemorative or educational 

 Priority will be given to applications for activities which include or address one or more of the following:

• Survivors or those with first-hand experience of the Holocaust or other genocides
• The needs or perspectives of children and young people
• Partnership and communities working together
• Opportunities for the Lord Mayor, elected members and other civic dignitaries to participate
• Activities which reflect the theme for 2025 – For a Better Future

You should make yourself familiar with the Holocaust Memorial Day Trusts' theme vision before applying. You can find this at https://www.hmd.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/HMD-2025-Theme-Vision.pdf 

What we won't fund

• Individuals
• Organisations that are not legally constituted or are profit-making
• Organisations who don't have a suitable bank account
• Core organisational costs
• Costs associated with making an application
• Costs of activities that have already taken place
• Activities that take place outside the Newcastle City Council area or that are not accessible to residents of the city
• Contributions to appeals or non-specific activities
• Religious activity which is not for wider public benefit
• Activities that are already fully funded unless the additional resources have a demonstrable and measurable impact on quality, extent and reach

Application process

How to apply

• Download the application form here.
• Save the application form on your computer and fill it in
• Email your completed form to andrew.rothwell@newcastle.gov.uk

Timetable for applications

• Tuesday 20 August 2024:   Applications open
• Friday 27 September 2024: Deadline for submission of applications
• Friday 11 October 2024:  Applications assessed
• Friday 18 October 2024:  Applicants informed of decision
• January 2025: Programme delivery
• February 2025: Project evaluations completed and returned

The application deadline is 5pm on Friday 27 September 2024

Organisations interested in apply for a grant from the Newcastle Holocaust Memorial Day Fund are advised to discuss their proposals before making an application. 

You can do this by emailing Andrew Rothwell, Culture and Tourism Managerat andrew.rothwell@newcastle.gov.uk.

If you require this information in an alternative format please email andrew.rothwell@newcastle.gov.uk