Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park launches new ‘Meet the Funder’ event
Voluntary and community groups across South Yorkshire are being invited to discover new funding opportunities at a special Meet the Funder event at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park.
The free drop-in session is being hosted in partnership with South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation (SYCF) and South Yorkshire Funding Advice Bureau (SYFAB).
It will take place on Thursday 9 October 2025, from 10am to 12pm, at the new co-working lounge at the Steel City Stadium, Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park.
Groups attending will have the chance to explore grant opportunities and access advice and guidance from Sheffield Legacy Fund, as well as SYCF, SYFAB, The National Lottery Community Fund, Key Fund and the Co-op Foundation.
Sheffield Legacy Fund awards grants of up to £1,000 to grassroots community organisations within a three-mile radius of Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park.
Claire Fretwell, Operations Manager at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, said:
The Legacy Fund has already been a huge success, awarding £43,182 to 44 groups since launching.
This new free event is a fantastic opportunity for us to connect with even more local groups, provide opportunities for them to ask questions about the Sheffield Legacy Fund and access support to help bring their community projects to life.
SYCF is the region’s largest grant giving organisation and in the last year awarded an *estimated £1.7million to more 400 groups.
Jess O’Neill, Grants and Partnerships Manager at SYCF, said:
We’re proud to be working in partnership with Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park for this fantastic new event.
We know how vital funding is for local voluntary and community groups to continue delivering the work that makes such a difference in South Yorkshire.
This event is designed to bring funders and groups together in one place, making it easier to access information and ask questions to help projects thrive.
*£1.7m is the estimated figure awarded to groups in the last 12 months.
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Meet Jess
Jess works Tuesdays - Fridays every week and oversees all of the grant programmes, so is able to help with specific and general queries about our programmes, our application systems and processes.
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 as an opportunity to chat to groups about any questions they may have, or assistance with our application system. These are held most Wednesdays 4pm - 5pm. The link to these meetings can be found on our Apply page.
Jess O'Neill
Grants and Partnerships Manager
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