Meet the Funder event returns to Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park

Voluntary and community groups from across South Yorkshire are invited to meet major funders and explore grant opportunities at a free event in Sheffield.

Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park will host its next Meet the Funder drop-in session at Canon Medical Arena on Thursday 12 November 2026, from 10am to 12pm.

The event is being organised in partnership with South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation (SYCF) and South Yorkshire Funding Advice Bureau (SYFAB).

Male and female adults walking around a room with pop up banners

Held twice a year, Meet the Funder gives voluntary and community organisations the opportunity to speak directly to funders, ask questions about their funding programmes and find out more about grants that could help bring their projects and ideas to life.

Funders attending the event include Sheffield Legacy Fund, South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation, South Yorkshire Funding Advice Bureau, Yorkshire Sport Foundation, The Co-op Foundation, The Key Fund and the Violence Reduction Unit.

Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park’s Sheffield Legacy Fund has awarded more than £80,000 to community organisations across the local area since it was launched.

Grants of up to £1,000 are available to grassroots community organisations based within three miles of the Park. Funding can support activities that improve physical and mental health and wellbeing and help reduce social isolation.

Representatives from Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park’s Sheffield Legacy Fund will be available at Meet the Funder to answer questions and provide advice on applying for funding.

South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation will share information about its range of grant programmes, while South Yorkshire Funding Advice Bureau will offer advice on funding applications and its programme of funding training.

Claire Fretwell, Operations Manager at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, said: “The Legacy Fund has had a really positive impact on our local community, supporting a wide range of groups to deliver projects that improve physical and mental health and wellbeing and reduce social isolation.

We’re looking forward to welcoming lots of new faces to our third Meet the Funder event. It’s a great opportunity for voluntary and community groups to find out more about our Legacy Fund, meet other funders and get advice that could help them secure funding for their work.

 

The event is free to attend and organisations can drop in at any time between 10am and 12pm.

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Meet Jess

Jess works Mondays - Thursdays every week and oversees all of the grant programmes here at SYCF, so is able to help with any queries you might have about what we fund.

She also oversees our panels and our many volunteers that lead on our decision making for many of our funds.

Jess holds a weekly Teams drop-in sessions to support with anything applicants might need. These are held most Wednesdays 4pm - 5pm. The link to this can be found on our Apply here, or Search our Grants page.

Jess O'Neill

Grants and Partnerships Manager

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Jess O'Neill