Skills, Knowledge and Tools for Jewish Education

Most grants in this programme are between £15,000 – £40,000 per year and our maximum length of support is generally 3 years.

We usually fund only up to 70% of the project budget and would require matched funding of at least 30% of the cost of the project. In rare cases, we will fund a more significant proportion of the costs. We are very unlikely to fund 100% of a project and applications requesting this are likely to be rejected.

We favour proposals that include multiple funding sources, as well as clear evidence of institutional commitment to the initiative in the form of gifts in kind and other forms of financial commitment.

MULTI-COUNTRY: We welcome applications from pan-European organisations, and organisations serving several communities in a European region. This includes Scandinavia and the Baltics, international organisations with a European affiliate. We are unable to accept applications from other FSU countries.

SINGLE COUNTRY: Applications from organisations serving one country are welcome from the following: Belgium, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Spain and UK.

The organisation’s activities must be deemed charitable under UK charity law and includes organisations which are either not-for-profit or publicly funded. For more information, please consult the UK’s Charity Commission website and its list of Charitable Purposes. 

Proposed projects can be a new initiative or an upgrade of an existing programme. If you are looking to improve an existing programme, the budget and narrative should reflect how the funds requested will be allocated to new activities aimed at strengthening the Jewish knowledge and delivery skills of the participants.

Proposed projects should target professionals and volunteers in Jewish community and informal educational settings.

Blended professional development programmes: With travel to training seminars still severely restricted, we welcome projects which address the complexity of combining in-person and virtual training for volunteers and professional educators across Europe.

Educational Technology training for Jewish educators: With Jewish education and community engagement programmes increasingly being delivered online, we welcome projects that help Jewish community educators to deploy advanced Ed-Tech curriculum tools, create content, support and train educators and coordinate peer exchange.

Eligible costs include the following:

• Staff hours for coordination of training programmes
• Expert lecturers and trainers
• Travel for participants

We support a wide variety of projects at different stages of development, including stand-alone initiatives and new aspects of an existing project. However, we do not fund retroactively. This means we will not consider a request for funding for an activity that has already happened or is scheduled to happen while the application for funding is being considered.

Proposed projects should focus on the Professional Development section of the application form and they can also include optional plans for programme implementation.

The Programme Implementation section of the application form is not compulsory as it might not be relevant in every case. However, applications should demonstrate how the skills, knowledge and tools the participants acquire through professional development engage their audiences in Jewish life and learning in the programme implementation. Your application can include budget allocation for this follow up programming. If programme implementation does not apply to your project, leave that section blank.

Professional Development Section (Training): 

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• A professional development programme addressing skills, knowledge and tools for staff and/or relevant volunteers that includes a strong Jewish learning component (in-person, virtual or blended)
• A support/mentoring programme for new Jewish educators/teachers
• Expert training visits from content specialists to work with staff and relevant volunteers to enrich Jewish curriculum and programme delivery
• Opportunities for shared Jewish learning with professionals in other institutions
• Learning trips by staff members seeking to shadow experts based at other European institutions.
• Support to engage a Jewish educator

OPTIONAL

Programme Implementation Section (Activities):

As a result of the above professional development programme, your application may outline a plan of Jewish-content based activities to be delivered to wider audiences in the community.

The range of examples listed below offer ideas that may also work in your organization. We do not expect to see a replication of these programmes in your application, but they may inspire you to think creatively about enhancing Jewish content in your organization and community.

• A training course for Jewish studies teachers on heritage skills and knowledge
• A young adult learning course based on 10 Jewish sensibilities
• A programme to enhance Jewish learning experiences at youth camps like Hiddur.
• Development of new approaches to Bnai Mitzvah celebrations eg. Bnai Mitzvah Revolution or Bar/Bat Mitzvah at the National Library of Israel
• Collaborative programmes between city and camp eg. Camp in the City
• A forum for educators and volunteers from different community institutions to look at the provision of Jewish education as a whole eg. the education ecosystem
• A network for education professionals in similar fields – network of early family engagement professionals

Please make sure you have submitted the following with your application. If it is not included, your application cannot be considered. If your application is successful, you will be required to submit further documentation once you receive your Grant Letter and Agreement.

• Budget table and budget explanation for the proposed project (Required): An example of a completed budget form can be downloaded from the application form.

• CVs of key staff members working on the project (Required) (maximum 2 pages for each staff member): This should reflect their experience in undertaking projects such as the one outlined in this application. Please combine all the CVs into one document before uploading it.

• Proof of Charitable Status (Required:) This will vary from country to country and according to the type of organisation making the application. In all cases, the activities of the organisation must qualify as charitable within the United Kingdom. If your organisation is a publicly funded body, such as a university, research centre or museum, then we will accept a copy of your organisation’s statutes as proof of its charitable status.

• The most recently available audited accounts or financial statement stamped by the financial authority in your country (Required): This is a formal record of your organisation’s financial activities for either a one- or three-year period. The statement must include a summary of the income and expenditure over a given period. It should have been prepared by a chartered accountant and, if your country requires it, stamped by the relevant government department.

• Income and Expenditure: If the submitted audited accounts or financial statement are not in English, you are required to submit an English summary of the income and expenditure account and balance sheet.

• Strategic Plan: If you are applying for a multi-year grant, please submit the latest organisational strategic plan which includes the larger vision of the organisation and how your project fits within that.

• Certification from the tax authorities: If you require a certificate from the tax authorities in order to demonstrate charitable status in your country, please forward a copy of this certificate.

• Photographs: If appropriate and relevant, please include up to 10 photographs (saved together into one word document or PDF). This could be some examples of the materials to be conserved, an exhibition space to be renovated, rare books to be repaired, an event etc. Please ensure that each photo is no larger than 1MB. Please note that you have a combined application file size allowance of 20Mb.

• Project Update/Final Report: If you currently receive funding from the Foundation please submit a one-page Project Update of your existing grant. If you have recently finished a grant funded by the Foundation please ensure the Final Report has been submitted before the closing date for the current grant round as this will be assessed alongside your new application.

• Other supporting documents: If there are any additional supporting documents which are relevant to your application you are also able to submit these online. This may include a letter of support from any partner organisation who will be involved with the project or a letter confirming copyright ownership.

Translations: For documents not originally written in English please include an English translation. This does not need to be an official translation, but it must be clear and accurate. Documents in a language other than English that are not accompanied by an English translation will not be processed.

Financial summaries: If financial documents are very long, please provide a translation summarising the main income and expenditure included in your financial statements and organisational budget. This document should be no longer than 10 pages.

Please upload your translated/summarised document against the same upload title you use for the original document. This means you may have two documents saved under each upload title.

Your organisation must provide proof of its charitable status or status as a not-for-profit or publicly funded organisation. This may be a UK charity number where applicable, or a copy of the relevant portion of the organisation’s statutes, confirming its non-profit, charitable or public (government-funded) status.

If you are in the process of obtaining charitable status, please be aware that no payments will be made to your organisation until you have achieved this status. Additionally, if your organisation is awarded a grant but fails to secure charitable status within 3 months of having been notified of the award, the grant will be cancelled.

Open access is a fundamental part of our mission to increase access to European Jewish heritage and culture. Any Foundation-funded project should enable free access to educational resources resulting from the project. The Foundation expects a collegial and generous attitude towards sharing material with other professionals, organisations and communities.

Applications can only be submitted via our online application process. We do not accept applications by mail or email.

Please use the Apply Now button at the bottom of the grant category page to begin your application.

The first time you login, you will need to create an account with an email and a password. Please keep a note of your login information as you will need it to access your application form on future visits.

Once you have set up your online account you can access it below.

When completing the application form, make sure to switch your web browser language settings to English if necessary.

You should expect notification via email letting you know whether your application has been successful or unsuccessful. For Spring grant rounds you will receive confirmation in late July or early August. For Autumn grant rounds you will receive confirmation in early January.

If your application is approved, you will receive an official Grant Offer Letter together with an Award Agreement which you will need to e-sign and return with the necessary supporting documentation.

Please ensure you add echosign@echosign.com to your safe senders list to ensure you receive all our communications.

If you have not applied to the Foundation before, please contact Daniela Greiber at d.greiber@rothschildfoundation.eu to discuss your proposal before submitting an application.

For any other information including technical support please contact info@rothschildfoundation.eu