Community 19.03.26

Meet the Funder at free Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park event

Voluntary and community groups from across South Yorkshire can find out more about grant opportunities from six funding organisations at a special event next month.

Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park is hosting the free drop-in event, in partnership with South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation (SYCF), at Canon Medical Arena on Thursday 16 April 2026.

Taking place between 10am and 12pm, the event will give community organisations the chance to speak directly with funders, ask questions and find out about grants that could support their projects and activities.

Representatives from Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park will be available to talk about its Sheffield Legacy Fund which has already donated over £70,000 to worthwhile causes in the local area. Grants of up to £1,000 are available for grassroots community organisations within three miles of the Park to support activities that improve physical and mental health and wellbeing and reduce social isolation. The fund is administered by South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation.

SYCF’s grants team will also be on hand to provide information about the range of funds it manages, including Community Grants and Small Grants programmes.

There will also be the opportunity to find out about funding opportunities from experts at South Yorkshire Funding Advice Bureau (SYFAB), Yorkshire Sport Foundation, the Coop Foundation and the Key Fund.

Claire Fretwell, operations manager, Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, said: “We hosted this event for the first time last year and it was a huge success highlighting the appetite for knowledge, information and support about funding opportunities in our region.

Due to demand and to accommodate numbers, we will be hosting this event at the Canon Medical Arena which we hope will provide groups with more opportunities and space to chat with the experts we have lined up for this important event.”

Jess O’Neill, grants and partnerships manager for SYCF, said: “When we hosted this event for the first time last year, we were overwhelmed by the positive response from the local community. So we are delighted to be teaming up with Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park once again to deliver another Meet the Funder in an even bigger space.

It is a great chance for voluntary and community groups from across the region to learn more about the wealth of funding opportunities available to support their vital work helping South Yorkshire thrive.”

For more information about attending and to book your place click here or email enquiries@syfab.org.uk or call 0114 262 5141.