Croydon put £240,000 to a public vote. More than 500 residents chose at six area events, and 26 community organisations will be funded out of 56 that applied.

Twenty-six community organisations in Croydon will be funded after residents voted on which projects should get the money. The pot was £240,000, the votes were cast at six public events between 4 August and 1 September, and more than 500 residents took part.

Executive Mayor Jason Perry confirmed the outcome in his weekly newsletter on 4 September. “We have now completed the Adult Social Care and Health Strategy Neighbourhood Grant events, which put £240,000 directly into the hands of local communities,” he wrote. (Croydon Council, 4 September 2026)

“More than 500 residents attended community events across all six areas of the borough and voted on the projects they wanted to receive funding. As a result, 26 community organisations will receive support to deliver a range of initiatives, from carer support and healthy ageing activities to wellbeing programmes and projects that help tackle loneliness and strengthen community connections.”

How the grant worked

This was a participatory grant rather than a panel decision. The council set out the process on its own page for the scheme:

  • The council is “investing £240,000 in community ideas across Croydon”.
  • Community organisations could apply for grants of up to £10,000 for projects supporting the Adult Social Care and Health Strategy.
  • 56 applications were received.
  • Groups pitched their idea at a local community voting event, residents voted, and “projects with the most votes receive funding”.

(Croydon Council, Adult Social Care and Health Neighbourhood Grant)

So 26 of the 56 applicants got through, and the people who decided were residents in the room rather than officers.

Key numbers for Croydon's Neighbourhood Grant: £240,000 put to a public vote, 56 applications received, 26 organisations funded, six area voting events, more than 500 residents voting, and a maximum grant of £10,000.
Twenty-six of 56 applicants were funded by public vote. Graphic by Croydon Today.

The six voting events

Each event covered a defined group of wards, and all six ran from 6pm to 8pm. The dates and venues come from the council’s own event listings.

Area Venue Date
North East Stanley Halls, South Norwood Tuesday 4 August
Central West 89 Canterbury Road, Croydon Wednesday 13 August
South East Selsdon Community Clubhouse Tuesday 18 August
South West Christ Church, Purley Tuesday 25 August
North West 2a Pollards Hill North Thursday 27 August
Central East 28 Shrublands Avenue, Shirley Tuesday 1 September

The wards attached to each area, as published by the council:

  • North East: Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, South Norwood, Thornton Heath
  • Central West: Addiscombe West, Broad Green, Fairfield, Selhurst, South Croydon, Waddon
  • South East: New Addington, New Addington South, Selsdon and Addington Village, Selsdon Vale and Forestdale
  • South West: Coulsdon Town, Kenley, Old Coulsdon, Purley and Woodcote, Purley Oaks and Riddlesdown, Sanderstead
  • North West: Bensham Manor, Norbury and Pollards Hill, Norbury Park, West Thornton
  • Central East: Addiscombe East, Park Hill and Whitgift, Shirley North, Shirley South, Woodside

What has not been published

The 26 organisations have not been named. The Mayor’s newsletter gives the number and the themes, not the list, and the council has issued no separate announcement of the results.

The council’s own grant page has not caught up either. Checked on 5 September, it still describes the voting as something to come: “We have received 56 applications and are now moving to the next stages”, followed by an invitation to “attend a community voting event”. The last of those events was on 1 September.

Nor has the council published how the £240,000 divides between the six areas, or how many votes each project received. With a maximum grant of £10,000 and 26 successful projects, the arithmetic only works if most awards are well below the ceiling, but that is inference rather than a published figure.

What it means for you

If your group pitched and won, the council’s contact for the scheme is talk2socialcare@croydon.gov.uk, which is the address on its grant page.

If you voted at one of the six events, the result in your area is not yet public. It is reasonable to ask the same address which projects in your area were funded and for how much.

If you run a community group and missed this round, the model is the thing to note. Croydon ran this as a pitch and a public vote rather than a written application scored behind closed doors, and it ran one event per area rather than a single borough-wide meeting. The council lists open funding schemes on its current funding opportunities page.

If you are looking for support now rather than funding, the projects that won cover carer support, healthy ageing, wellbeing and loneliness, and they will be delivered locally over the coming months. We will publish the list of the 26 when the council does.