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Grants for Special Schools:

A Starter Guide to Funding Sensory and Inclusive Play

Practical support for school leaders investing in therapeutic, sensory and inclusive play provision.

Grants for Special Schools: A Starter Guide to Funding Sensory and Inclusive Play
Practical support for school leaders investing in therapeutic, sensory and inclusive play provision

Grant Funding for Sensory and Inclusive Play: A Quick Guide for Schools

Many special schools and settings can access funding to enhance their play provision — but knowing what’s eligible and why it matters can make all the difference. Here’s a quick overview to support your grant applications.

🎮 What Kinds of Play Can Be Funded?

Most grants for special schools and ALN (Additional Learning Needs) provision support a wide range of play opportunities, including:

• Sensory Play – e.g. tactile walls, water and light tables, sound exploration
• Therapeutic Play – e.g. play-based interventions for wellbeing, sensory regulation, and trauma recovery
• Outdoor Play – e.g. accessible climbing frames, nature-based zones, inclusive swings
• Digital Play – e.g. interactive screens, VR or AR tools for immersive storytelling and regulation

🧸 Examples of Eligible Equipment & Resources

When applying for funding, you can often include:

• Sensory Panels and Walls – textured, light-up, or interactive surfaces
• Adapted Seating – supportive swing seats, floor rockers, modular seating for sensory rooms
• Virtual Reality Headsets – for sensory storytelling, anxiety reduction, or skill-building
• Specialist Trampolines or Rebound Therapy Equipment
• Communication Tools – such as AAC-friendly play kits and inclusive technology
• Nature Play Resources – like raised garden beds, mud kitchens, and wildlife exploration kits

 Why This Matters

Play is not an ‘extra’ — it’s a legal and wellbeing priority. In Wales, schools must meet Play Sufficiency Duties, ensuring all children, including those with ALN, have rich, meaningful play opportunities.

Well-funded play spaces support:

• Emotional regulation and sensory integration
• Communication and social development
• Inclusion and accessibility for children with complex needs
• Fulfilment of statutory obligations under ALN and well-being frameworks

📥 You can Download my free Grant Starter Kit in order to edit the funding templates from my website:.angeandersontherapeutic.co.uk  or watch my YouTube video for a walk-through of the key steps!

Let play be purposeful — and properly funded.

Quick-Reference List of Current Available Grants

1. National Lottery Awards for All

What it funds: Sensory play spaces, wellbeing projects, inclusive activities, and accessible community events.
Amount: Up to £10,000.
Ideal for: Schools, community organisations, and charities with a clear local benefit.
🌐 Website: https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk

 2. Variety – The Children’s Charity

What it funds: Sensory and mobility equipment, play apparatus, and school-based specialist resources.
Amount: £200–£6,000.
Ideal for: Individual children (via professionals) and schools applying for equipment.
🌐 Website: https://www.variety.org.uk

 3. Wooden Spoon – The Children’s Charity of Rugby

What it funds: Sensory rooms, outdoor play spaces, specialist playgrounds, and accessible environments.
Amount: £5,000–£30,000.
Ideal for: Schools, hospices, and non-profits supporting children with disabilities.
🌐 Website: https://woodenspoon.org.uk

 4. Learning Through Landscapes – Local School Nature Grants

What it funds: Outdoor play kits, sensory gardens, loose parts play, and staff training.
Amount: Varies (usually seasonal grants).
Ideal for: Early years and primary schools looking to develop nature-based play.
🌐 Website: https://www.ltl.org.uk

 5. Family Fund

What it funds: Sensory toys, communication aids, play and tech tools (granted directly to families).
Amount: ~£400 average per child.
Ideal for: Parents/carers of disabled or seriously ill children; school staff can help families apply.
🌐 Website: https://www.familyfund.org.uk

 6. Lord’s Taverners

What it funds: Sensory and soft play spaces, sports and physical activity equipment, inclusive PE resources.
Amount: Varies (focus on under-19s).
Ideal for: Schools and youth organisations working with children who have disabilities.
🌐 Website: https://www.lordstaverners.org

 7. Steve Morgan Foundation

What it funds: Sensory and therapeutic tools, technology, and intervention-based play equipment.
Amount: £500–£5,000+.
Ideal for: Organisations and families in North Wales, Merseyside, Cheshire, and North Shropshire.
🌐 Website: https://stevemorganfoundation.org.uk

 8. Clothworkers’ Foundation

What it funds: Capital improvements like sensory rooms, accessible bathrooms, and inclusive playgrounds.
Amount: Up to £25,000+.
Ideal for: Special schools and charities supporting disabled children and young people.
🌐 Website: https://www.clothworkersfoundation.org.uk

9. True Colours Trust – UK Small Grants

What it funds: Hydrotherapy pools, multi-sensory rooms, specialized play equipment, minibuses, and activities for disabled children & young people.
Amount: Up to £10,000.
Ideal for: Charities/CICs with annual income under £350k.

🌐 Website https://www.truecolourstrust.org.uk/uk-small-grants

10. Buttle UK – Chances for Children Grants

What it funds: Emergency grants for vulnerable children in crisis—can cover educational and sensory play items.
Amount: Varies (historically ~£400–£500).
Ideal for: Schools or families supporting children in financial hardship or social crisis.

🌐 Website https://buttleuk.org/apply-for-a-grant/

11. Caudwell Children Equipment Grant

What it funds: Powered wheelchairs, specialist seating, therapy trikes, sensory equipment, and sports gear.
Amount: Covers 70–80% of cost.
Ideal for: Children up to 18 (or 25 for sports equipment) with chronic illness/disability; household income under £45k.

🌐 Website https://www.caudwellchildren.com/services/equipment/

12. Elifar Foundation

What it funds: Mobility aids, sensory toys, seating systems, room padding, communication equipment.
Amount: Varies.
Ideal for: Young people (up to age 28) with physical or learning disabilities

🌐 Website https://www.elifarfoundation.org.uk/

13. Children Today

What it funds: Adapted car seats/trikes, specialist seating, manual/powered wheelchairs, sleep equipment, sensory tools.
Amount: Varies per item.
Ideal for: UK residents aged 0–25 receiving DLA with medical professional referral.

🌐 Website https://www.childrentoday.org.uk/apply-now/

14. Florence Nightingale Aid in Sickness Trust

What it funds: Sensory/medical equipment like nebulisers, recliners, hoists, communication aids, therapy tools.
Amount: Project-based; varies.
Ideal for: Disabled individuals of all ages via professional caseworker.

🌐 Website http://fnaist.org.uk/

15. Newlife Foundation

What it funds: Beds, buggies, wheelchairs, seating systems, communication aids, plus loans of specialist toys.
Amount: Varies; loans for temporary use.
Ideal for: UK children under 19 with disabilities or life-limiting conditions.

🌐 Website https://newlifecharity.co.uk/

16. Independence at Home

What it funds: Powered wheelchairs, specialist furniture, home adaptations.
Amount: £300–£600 per grant.
Ideal for: Individuals with long-term illnesses or disabilities in financial need.

🌐 Website http://www.independenceathome.org.uk/

17. The Child Brain Injury Trust

What it funds: Sensory & mobility equipment, plus £125 per child for social/therapeutic activities (e.g. music, dance) and family breaks.
Amount: Up to £125 for activity grants, plus equipment support.
Ideal for: Children with acquired brain injuries and their families.

🌐 Website https://childbraininjurytrust.org.uk/how-we-help/grants/

18. The Baily Thomas Charitable Fund
What it funds: Capital and revenue projects to support individuals with learning disabilities, including autism. This includes sensory rooms, play therapy, equipment, building improvements, and community provision (e.g. adult evening use of school facilities).
Amount: Small grants up to £9,000 (apply anytime); large grants over £9,000 (annual deadline: 1 December).
Ideal for: Special schools, PTAs, or exempt charities seeking to improve sensory provision, inclusive spaces or offer lifelong learning opportunities for those with complex needs.
🌐 Website https://www.bailythomas.org.uk

19. Play Wales – Innovation & Supporting Communities Grant

What it funds: Collaborative play and anti-poverty projects, including sensory/outdoor play initiatives.
Amount:

• Community level: up to £5 k
• Local: up to £25 k
• Regional: up to £100 k
  Ideal for: Welsh public/third sector partnerships tackling child poverty via inclusive play

🌐 Website Funding – Play Wales.

Tips for Using These Grants

Tips for Using These Grants

1. Match the funder purpose: Use Caudwell Children or Children Today for equipment; Buttle UK or Child Brain Injury Trust for crisis support; Play Wales for networks/projects.
2. Maximise impact: Combine a core grant (e.g. True Colours Trust) with smaller funders (Independence at Home) to fund a multi-sensory play room plus seating, toys, and training.
3. Evidence of impact: Emphasize improvements in sensory regulation, social engagement, ALN compliance, and Wales Play Sufficiency duties.
4. Professional referrals: Many (Elifar, Children Today, FNAST) require healthcare or SENCO support, so link your application to professional assessments.
5. Diversify applications: Avoid losing a round by applying to several aligned funders simultaneously—just be transparent in applications.
6. Become a registered charity: This allows your Friends/PTA group or satellite organisation to apply for a wider range of grants, including trusts restricted to charities.
7. Show community benefit: Highlight how your project will support families, evening/weekend use, or transitions to adulthood—especially when applying for capital funding like CFS.
8. Include children’s voices: Where appropriate, include drawings, preferences, or quotes from children and young people—this can strengthen applications significantly.
9. Follow up with feedback: Funders often favour repeat applicants who have reported back clearly on previous grants—use photos, quotes, and brief summaries to show success.

Grant Application Template (For Schools to edit and personalise)

Title: Sensory and Inclusive Play Equipment Grant Proposal

1. Project Overview

School Name:
Contact Person:
Position:
Email/Phone:
Project Title: Enhancing Sensory and Inclusive Play at [School Name]
Summary:
We are applying for funding to purchase inclusive play equipment—both digital and physical—to support the physical, emotional, sensory, and cognitive needs of neurodivergent pupils and those with complex learning profiles at our special school.

2. Rationale & Need

Our pupils include children with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD), autism spectrum conditions, sensory processing differences, and physical disabilities. Many have a cognitive developmental age that aligns more closely with early play stages than chronological expectations.

For these children, play is not optional—it is the foundation for cognitive growth, emotional regulation, communication, and social development. Play offers access to connection, agency, exploration, and co-regulation. When embedded with sensory integration and therapeutic strategies, play becomes a developmental bridge.

We are currently under-resourced/outdated/lacking in variety [delete as appropriate], and this project will address those critical gaps by ensuring access to equipment that enables progression through play schemas, engagement in co-play, and rich multi-sensory exploration.

3. What We Plan to Purchase

• [e.g. Interactive floor projector system for visual and motor planning play]
• [Multi-texture sensory panels and weighted items for tactile and proprioceptive engagement]
• [Inclusive seating, swings, and adapted trikes for vestibular stimulation and shared movement experiences]
• [Tactile path kits, resonance boards, and sound-based play tools for schema-based and musical exploration]

All items will be used during structured therapeutic sessions and free-choice playtimes to ensure a blend of guided and self-directed engagement.

4. Impact

This project will:
• Enhance progression through play schemas (e.g. trajectory, rotation, enclosing, transporting), critical for brain development
• Foster social interaction, turn-taking, and co-play between peers and adults
• Improve sensory regulation and reduce anxiety for ALN learners
• Support communication through cause-and-effect play, musical interaction, and AAC-linked tools
• Offer meaningful opportunities for independence, inclusion, and joyful exploration in a safe, well-equipped environment

5. Budget Breakdown

6. Sustainability

Our staff are trained in therapeutic play, sensory integration, and child-led approaches. All equipment will be embedded into daily routines, learning plans, and IDP/ EHCP/SEN provision. It will be maintained by site staff and included in whole-school development planning.

7. Supporting Quotes

Please find attached:
• Supplier quotes with VAT and delivery
• Product links and usage descriptions for clarity on functionality and suitability

  Letter of Support Template (e.g. from SENCO or Therapist)

To whom it may concern,

I am writing in support of [School Name]’s application to fund essential sensory and inclusive play equipment for children with significant learning and sensory needs.

As [insert role — e.g. SENCO/OT/therapeutic lead], I work closely with pupils who require play-based and sensory strategies to access the curriculum, regulate their bodies, and engage in meaningful interaction.

The items requested will be transformational for our pupils’ wellbeing and access to play. We strongly endorse this application.

Yours sincerely,
[Name, Role, Contact Details]

Extending the Role of Special Schools: A Lifelong Lifeline

A personal concern I’ve long held is what happens after our children leave special school. While some go on to college for a couple of years, the options in the wider community often narrow dramatically after that — leaving many families without meaningful support or structured opportunities.

When I opened Ysgol Pen Coch, I was determined to change that narrative. With lottery funding and the backing of a visionary after-school advisor in my local authority, Lesley Courtney, we were able to extend the use of our school building into the evenings — welcoming adults with severe and complex learning needs for enrichment and learning activities. Unfortunately, after I left the school just before COVID, the project wasn’t continued, and a new lottery bid wasn’t submitted, so the provision ended. But I’ve continued to advocate for this kind of work, particularly through regular conversations with the Welsh Government. The Equity in Education team at Equityineducation@gov.wales  have shown strong commitment to progressing inclusive, community-based options for ALN learners — more so than I’ve yet seen from national policy in England.

If you work in a special school and share this concern, you might consider how your school could apply for CFS capital funding to extend your facilities for community use, particularly for young people and adults with ongoing complex needs. These bids must be made in partnership with your local authority (LA), as they coordinate Expressions of Interest (EoIs) each year under the Welsh Government’s Community Focused Schools (CFS) programme.

Expressions of Interest are typically invited for capital projects at existing educational sites and must align with current CFS priorities — for example, the 2025–26 cycle focuses on multi-agency activity. The bid period generally opens at the start of each financial year, and EoIs must be co-developed by schools/settings and their LA, guided by Welsh Government criteria.

If this feels like the right direction for your school and community, I’d encourage you to begin conversations early. Your CFS LA Lead or Community Focused Schools Manager is a good first point of contact. With imagination and the right support, our school buildings can become true community hubs that continue to serve learners across their lives.