Our Patient Benefits Grants Programme is your opportunity to apply for projects which directly benefit patients at University Hospital Southampton.
This programme reflects Southampton Hospitals Charity’s objective to improve patient care.
Patient Benefit Fund Round 2: Opening Delayed
The second round of the Patient Benefit Fund, originally due to open on 1 September, has been temporarily delayed. We appreciate your understanding while we manage our existing funding commitments responsibly following an unprecedented response to the heatwaves, during which we supported more than 23,000 patients and staff across the hospital.
We expect the fund to reopen within a matter of weeks and will publish the new date as soon as it is confirmed. While we recognise that the delay may affect your plans, we hope the additional time will give you an opportunity to develop your proposal, work with relevant colleagues and prepare an application that can progress through assessment as smoothly as possible when the fund reopens.
How to Prepare Your Application
• Seek specialist input early. Obtain all relevant reviews, approvals and sign-off from teams such as Publications, Patient Information, Accessibility, IT, Estates and Procurement, as well as any other departments involved in your proposal.
• Secure managerial support. Make sure the appropriate manager is aware of and supports the proposal before you submit your application.
• Check delivery requirements. Identify any operational, technical, estates, compliance, governance or implementation requirements that could affect how or when the project is delivered.
• Confirm the practical details. Establish likely costs, dependencies, risks and resource requirements. Include up-to-date quotations or other supporting evidence where relevant.
• Anticipate assessment questions. Gather supporting information and address likely questions about patient benefit, need, deliverability, value for money and sustainability in advance.
• Review every document. Make sure your project plan, application details and supporting documents are complete and accurate.
Applications that have already addressed these points often progress through assessment more efficiently, helping to reduce time spent on getting quotation or making complete an application. Taking these steps now will put you in a strong position to submit a clear, high-quality and well-prepared application when the fund reopens.
We will share the confirmed reopening date here as soon as possible. If you need advice while preparing your application in the meantime, please contact the Grants Team at grants@southamptonhospitalscharity.org
The Patient Benefit Grants Programme is currently closed and will reopen in Autumn 2026.
We recommend submitting your application at least two months prior to the expected start of your project.
Projects under £25,000:
Your application will need to be completed in one sitting. If it is helpful, you can draft your answers in a word document (see application questions here) ready to copy and paste into the online form.
The grants team aim to assess your application within 6 weeks.
Projects £25,000 – £100,000:
Our Patient Benefit applications for projects between £25,000 and £100,000 is currently closed.
We open for larger applications twice per year. Please keep an eye on the website for updated application dates.
Criteria and eligibility
Your project must:
- Be submitted by a UHS staff member
- Be for kit, equipment or refurbishment for patient benefit. We will also consider funding small one-off events, if there is evidence of need and the long-term impact of this work. This grant round is not for salaries or ongoing project delivery.
- Be additional to what is offered by the NHS
- Provide a clear breakdown of item costs, accompanied by an active quote for works, if required. You can use our template here.
All applications must be submitted via Southampton Hospitals Charity’s grants portal. If you have difficulty using the system, please contact our grants team on grants@southamptonhospitalscharity.org or 023 8120 8881 to discuss alternative application methods.
Once you have applied, this will be reviewed by Southampton Hospitals Charity grants team and assessed using the following criteria:
- Strategic Alignment
- Quality of applications
- Patient Input and Impact
- Value for money
- Evaluation and sustainability
What happens if I am awarded funding?
You will be sent a Grant Award letter to the email address provided in the application form, which will detail the amount awarded and any payment information.
You must read and sign the terms and conditions of the grant and return to the Charity.
If we need to fundraise specifically to support your project, we will arrange progress updates every three months.
There will be a direct transfer to the Trust via the cost centre which you provide on the application.
You will then liaise with your budget holder to arrange purchase of items using the Trust’s procurement process.
We no longer reimburse individuals for their own expenditure, or purchase items on behalf of the Trust. All payments will be made via the cost centre.
You will need to submit an end of grant report and budget update, so be sure to keep a log of the money that has been spent, and the usage / impact of your equipment. We have provided some guidance and feedback collection templates here.
What happens if my application is unsuccessful?
Our team will provide feedback on why your project wasn’t awarded funding. You may wish to apply in the next funding round or look at our other grant funding programmes.