Black Funding Network Autumn Funder 2026 – London
About this Event
Black Funding Network Autumn Funder 2026 – London
Date & Time: October 1, 2026 at 5:15 PM (BST)
Join us for an inspiring evening of collective giving in action as we aim to raise at least £6,000 per organisation for three incredible Black-led grassroots organisations in just 90 minutes! This is our 11th funder event, and together, since 2020, we have already raised over £202,000 for 30 organisations.
Be part of the change and help us continue to empower communities through impactful funding. Your presence at our Autumn Funder is a vital contribution to this movement of generosity and support.
The organisations presenting:
- Awaken Genius Alternative Education CIC – Tackling the school-to-Pr*son pipeline by supporting neurodivergent Black children and their families through somatic therapy, creative arts, and academic nurture in Northumberland Park.
- Quiet Time Therapy – Providing culturally adapted, psychologically rigorous therapy for Black and racially marginalised adults, addressing disparities in mental health access and outcomes.
- The Catalyst Collective Organisation CIC – Connecting Black girls with professional Black women mentors to build confidence, skills, and social capital, helping them realise their aspirations.
Why attend?
- Meet three incredible organisations creating change in alternative education for neurodivergent children, culturally responsive mental health support, and mentoring for Black girls and young women.
- Experience the power of collective giving - see your impact in real time.
- Connect with a community of changemakers, professionals, and philanthropists.
Date and time: Tuesday, 1st October 2026, 5:15 PM – 8:30 PM
Location: London
Tickets: £15 (all proceeds split evenly among the organisations as additional funding).
Can’t attend? You can still pledge online to support their work.
Let’s come together to fund bold ideas and create lasting change.
Awaken Genius
Mission: To break the school-to-Pr*son pipeline for Black neurodivergent children by addressing Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and compromised attachment through trauma-informed somatic therapy, creative arts, and academic nurture.
Project for our Autumn Funder 2026:
- £2,000: Trauma-Informed & Somatic Framework Development – Designing body-based regulation modules for neurodivergent children with high ACE scores
- £3,000: Specialist Therapeutic Facilitation – Securing an intergenerational team of therapists and educators to deliver the Integrated Therapeutic Pathway in Northumberland Park
- £1,000: Family Regulation & Sensory Toolkits – Creating and distributing physical kits to help families translate somatic techniques into daily life
Why Support Them?
- 75% of parents now manage stress effectively (up from 8.3%)
- 81.3% of children now identify as a "Genius" instead of "at-risk"
- 81.3% of children now "talk it out" to solve problems instead of reacting with anger
- 3-year residency at Somerford Grove Adventure Playground, endorsed by Ferry Lane Primary School
Website: Awaken Genius
Quiet Time Therapy
Mission: To make therapy accessible for Black and racially marginalised communities by providing culturally adapted, psychologically rigorous therapy that names and works with the psychological impacts of racial battle fatigue, respectability politics, and code-switching.
Project for Autumn Funder 2026:
What £6,000 will fund: The first delivery of The Quiet Cohort. An 8-week closed group therapy programme integrating 7 evidence-based frameworks, with cultural responsiveness built into the clinical model from inception rather than adapted from a mainstream one.
£750 puts one person through the entire programme: individual screening and assessment, eight weekly group sessions with an accredited therapist, validated outcome monitoring at three points, participant materials, and the clinical supervision and secure infrastructure behind all of it.
Impact: 8- 10 fully subsidised places for Black and racially marginalised adults who could not otherwise access therapy.
Why Support Them?
The people who need this most are the least likely to be referred anywhere. They're high-functioning, composed, and quietly exhausted. They don't present in crisis, until they do.
- Mainstream services measure the mask. Scores look fine, so they're discharged as recovered while they're still only surviving. Keeping going was never wellness.
- Only 1% of UK therapists are Black. For many, therapy means explaining your entire life before you can begin the work.
- Black people are 4x more likely to be detained under the Mental Health Act — and the gap is widening. That is what being missed for years eventually looks like.
- The Quiet Cohort was built for this presentation from the ground up — closed group, careful screening, seven evidence-based frameworks, and no demand to perform okay in the room.
- Delivered by accredited Black therapists under clinical supervision, with validated measures (PHQ-9, GAD-7, WSAS) at assessment, midpoint and completion. Cultural responsiveness with clinical rigour, not one instead of the other.
- This funds the first cohort there has ever been. The programme is built, screening is live, partners are ready to refer. Your pledge is what starts it.
Website: Quiet Time Therapy
The Catalyst Collective
Mission: To empower Black girls and young women by connecting them with professional Black women mentors, building confidence, skills, social capital, and knowledge to realise their aspirations.
Project for Autumn Funder 2026:
- 50% of £6,000: Enrichment Activities – Funding Insight Days with corporate partners, creative industries, health, research, and policy fields
- 50% of £6,000: Organisational Infrastructure – Investing in staff capacity, systems, mentor engagement, and fundraising development
- Impact: 125+ mentoring pairs annually, with 100% of mentees recommending the programme
Why Support Them?
- Black women hold just 1.4% of director-level roles in FTSE 100 companies
- Only 5% of charity trustees are from BAME backgrounds
- Supported almost 400 mentoring pairs since 2021
- 100% of mentees and 91% of mentors would recommend the programme
- Founder Chloe Lewis recognised as Community Impact Leader of the Year at the CCC Awards
Website: The Catalyst Collective
Our Emcee for the Evening: Brenda Emmanus, OBE
Brenda Emmanus OBE has had a consistent and varied career as a Broadcaster and Journalist working across print, radio and television. She has built her career and reputation across a range of genre from news and current affairs, popular factual, travel and fashion.
After graduating from the Polytechnic of Central London (now Westminster University) Brenda immediately started work as a print journalist before joining the BBC.
Working first as a researcher in news and current affairs, she went on to become a reporter and assistant producer before a stint as a freelance presenter working for Channel 4, ITV and Sky and across public service and commercial radio stations.
In a career that spans over 30 years Brenda has spent a significant part as an Arts, Culture and Entertainment Correspondent for the BBC. She presented the ground breaking BBC Fashion programme, ‘The Clothes Show,’ as well as documentaries on Princess Diana, Tate Modern, the history of Black British Artists and the British Designers that shaped the world, and is consistently called to host cultural and commercial events.
Brenda has interviewed some of the biggest names in arts and entertainment -from Oprah Winfrey, Maya Angelou, David Hockney and Robert Redford to Whitney Houston to Sir Elton John, Carlos Acosta, Angelina Jolie and Tom Cruise.
She was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2019 for services to Broadcasting and Diversity, was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of the Arts in 2022 and a Community Honours Award in the House of Lords (2017) amongst numerous accolades for her work.
She is a Non-Executive Director at Faber Publishers , Chair of the Board of Trustees for Sir Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures Dance Company and a member of the Editorial Board of the Royal Academy Magazine. Brenda is sole Director of Free Spirit, an independent production company.
Agenda
🕑: 05:15 PM - 06:15 PM
Networking, canapes & drinks
Host: Monzo
🕑: 06:15 PM - 06:45 PM
Welcome & Impact Roundup
Host: Patricia Hamzahee
Info: Find out more about what to expect from the night, and the work that Black Funing Network has done since 2020 - to see how this event will help 3 incredible organisations raise £6,000+ each through crowdfunding.
🕑: 06:45 PM - 07:30 PM
Meet the Organisations
Info: Each of the three Black-led grassroots organisations will be sharing insights into their work & the projects that our collective pledges will be supporting. 6 minutes each.
🕑: 07:30 PM - 08:15 PM
Collective Pledging Session
Info: This is where the magic happens - through collective pledging we will help to raise £6,000+ per organisation.
🕑: 08:15 PM - 08:30 PM
Collective totals, event closes with networking and celebration
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
GBP 0.00 to GBP 16.96
