Market Harborough & The Bowdens Charity

What Market Harborough & The Bowdens Charity does

Market Harborough & The Bowdens Charity is a UK Charitable Incorporated Organisation (Charity Commission registration 1157787) operating as a grant-making community foundation for the residents of Market Harborough, Great Bowden, and Little Bowden in Leicestershire. The charity was formed in 1994 through the amalgamation of three predecessor charities whose origins trace back to a 1570 Deed of Feoffment, and it operates under a board of approximately 12-13 trustees supported by a four-person professional team (Charity Secretary, Assistant Charity Secretary, Administrator, and Finance Officer). Its endowment has grown sevenfold and disposable grant income fivefold since the 1994 amalgamation.

The charity delivers its mission through six core programmes: Community Project Grants for local organisations across sports, arts, heritage, health, and education; Relief in Need Grants for individuals facing hardship (covering white goods, furniture, mobility aids, and essentials); Education Grants supporting students in further and higher education; heritage preservation (including ownership of the Grade I listed Old Grammar School, built 1614, acquired in 2005 and refurbished in 2014); arts promotion through grants and venue provision; and management of two allotment sites with 160-240 plots. It also operates the Old Grammar School Undercroft as a hire venue for local community groups and hosts Beacon Care and Advice rent-free in its Fairfield Road offices.

The revenue model is non-commercial: the charity is funded by investment income from its centuries-old endowment and legacy gifts, with grant disbursements and community impact serving as the primary outputs rather than revenue generation. Notable grant deployments include over £540,000 to local schools over 2019-2022, £44,500 to Market Harborough Rugby Club in 2022, £30,000 to Harborough Community Bus in 2023, and £7,500 to HCYC Young Carers Group in 2024. Distribution is direct (online, email, post, in-person applications) and tightly bounded by the charity's defined geographic area of benefit.

Name

Market Harborough & The Bowdens Charity

Legal name

Market Harborough & The Bowdens Charity

Website

https://mhbcharity.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Market Harborough & The Bowdens Charity is a UK Charitable Incorporated Organisation (est. 1994, origins 1570) that distributes endowment-funded grants to community organisations, students, and individuals in hardship across Market Harborough, Great Bowden, and Little Bowden, while managing the Old Grammar School and allotment sites.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Charitable Grant-Making Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Other Grantmaking and Giving Services (813219)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries (BPAGAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Scholarships, Grants & Education Benefits Administration (Financing-adjacent) (FSAKAEAM), Fundraising & Annual Giving (EDALAOAB)

Keywords

• Community grant funding
• Charitable endowment
• Relief in need
• Education grants
• Heritage preservation

Headquarters

HQ city

Market Harborough

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Endowment Investment Income: The charity generates income from investments left in trust over hundreds of years. The endowment value has increased sevenfold since the 1994 amalgamation. Income is used to fund grants for community projects, relief in need, education, heritage, arts, and allotments within the local area.
2. Legacy Giving / Donations: The charity accepts legacy gifts left in wills to ensure long-term sustainability and continued support for the local community.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Market Harborough & The Bowdens Charity is a grant-making charitable organisation providing financial grants and community services to residents of Market Harborough, Great Bowden, and Little Bowden in Leicestershire. Its core offerings include Community Project Grants, Relief In Need Grants for individuals in hardship, Education Grants for students, heritage preservation funding, arts promotion grants, and the management of allotment sites and the historic Old Grammar School Undercroft venue.

Product overview

Market Harborough & The Bowdens Charity operates as a grant-making charitable organisation rather than a technology product company. Its core offering consists of multiple grant programmes supporting the local community: Community Project Grants for organisations, Relief In Need Grants for individuals facing hardship, Education Grants for students, and funding for Heritage preservation and Arts promotion. The charity also manages community facilities including allotment sites and the Old Grammar School Undercroft venue.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Community Project Grant
• Relief In Need Grant
• Education Grants
• Allotments
• Old Grammar School Undercroft Hire
• Keeping Heritage Alive
• Promoting the Arts

Quantifiable outcome

• Over £540,000 invested in local schools over three years (2019-2022)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered secondary, minor and core.

• Harborough Theatre / Octagon Film Club / Harborough Drama SocietysecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2025Partnership to support a free dementia-friendly singalong screening of 'The King and I' at Harborough Theatre, supported by the charity alongside Octagon Film Club and Harborough Drama Society.
• Phoenix Saxophone OrchestraminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 May 2025The orchestra performed at the Old Grammar School Undercroft as part of the Creative Harborough busking initiative, raising money for the Jubilee Food Bank.
• Creative HarboroughcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 November 2024Partnership to bring musical and creative performances to the Undercroft of the Old Grammar School. The charity owns the Grade I listed building and supports the initiative by funding a PPL PRS music license (£1,700 for 12 months) and permitting use of the venue free of charge. This supports local artists, especially young talent, to showcase their skills in a public space.
• HCYC Young Carers GroupsecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024The charity awarded a £7,500 grant to support young carers in the Market Harborough area through the HCYC (Harborough Community Youth Charity) Young Carers Group.
• Harborough Community BuscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Harborough Community Bus is a volunteer-driven charity running three minibuses providing transport to local people who might not otherwise be able to get to their destination. The charity awarded a £30,000 grant towards a new 14-seater wheelchair accessible minibus. In 2023, HCB completed 503 bookings.
• Dementia UK / Admiral Nurse ServicesecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022The charity supports the Market Harborough Admiral Nurse Clinics service, launched in October 2023, available fortnightly from Market Harborough Medical Centre and Two Shires Surgery. The service supports families struggling with dementia impact, helping them receive specialist care from Admiral Nurses.
• Market Harborough Rugby ClubsecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022The charity granted £44,500 in 2022 to help fund the installation of floodlights on all five of the club's pitches, benefiting community sports participation.
• Beacon Care and AdvicecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBeacon Care and Advice is a community-focused health and social care organization (CIC) based in Market Harborough. The charity provides space within its Fairfield Road offices rent-free for Beacon's services to operate. Beacon offers free advice on welfare, disability services, mental wellbeing, and accessing local services, making them a key partner in delivering community support.
• VASL (Voluntary Action South Leicestershire)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVASL is a local charity providing services to improve lives in the community, including support for family carers, older people who are lonely, volunteer transport, and mental wellbeing activities. VASL's Loneliness project manager (Rohini Corfield) also serves as a trustee of the charity.
• Jubilee Food BanksecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe charity works with Jubilee Food Bank which provides emergency food for people in crisis in the Market Harborough area. Referrals for relief in need are directed to the Food Bank as appropriate.
• Local Schools (Market Harborough, Great Bowden, Little Bowden)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple local schools including Farndon Fields, Great Bowden, Little Bowden, Meadowdale, Ridgeway, Robert Smyth, St Josephs, C of E Fairfield Road, and Welland Park Academy have received grants totaling over £540,000 over three years for IT equipment, sports facilities, playgrounds, and educational resources.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• The Garfield Weston Foundation: Major UK grantmaking foundation distributing tens of millions annually to education, heritage, health, and community causes. Comparable on grant categories MHBC funds but operates at significantly greater national scale.
• The Henry Smith Charity: UK grantmaking charity with a focus on supporting disadvantaged people, closely aligned with MHBC's Relief in Need grants. Operates nationally and at a substantially larger grantmaking budget than MHBC.
• The Tudor Trust: UK-wide grantmaking trust focused on supporting small community groups, charities, and social enterprises. Comparable to MHBC's Community Project Grant programme but operates nationally rather than within a defined geographic remit.
• The Rank Foundation: UK grantmaking foundation supporting Christian, education, and community causes. Comparable on Education Grants and community welfare grantmaking but operates with a national footprint and larger asset base.
• Lloyds Bank Foundation: UK charity supporting small and medium-sized charities working with disadvantaged people. Most directly comparable to MHBC's Relief in Need and community project grantmaking remit but at materially greater national scale.
• The Dulverton Trust: UK-wide grantmaking trust funding youth, heritage, conservation, and welfare projects. Overlaps with MHBC's Education, Heritage and community welfare programs but on a national rather than local scale.
• BBC Children in Need: Major UK grantmaker supporting children and young people, including MHBC-funded youth programmes such as HCYC Young Carers. Comparable on youth-focused grantmaking but operates nationally with fundraising-driven rather than endowment-driven funding.

Direct peers

• Christ's Hospital Foundation: Historic endowed UK charity founded in 1552, stewarding significant assets to deliver education and community benefit. Comparable to MHBC on multi-century endowment stewardship and asset-backed community programs.
• The Harpur Trust: Historic endowed charity based in Bedford administering almshouses, schools, and community grants under a similar town-anchored remit. Most structurally comparable to MHBC because it also derives grantmaking capacity from a centuries-old endowment tied to a specific geographic community.
• King Edward VI Academy Trust Birmingham: Long-established UK endowed foundation supporting schools and community initiatives from a Royal Charter-era endowment. Operates a similar endowment-to-grant pipeline within a defined geographic remit, making it directly comparable on capital structure and beneficiary model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/MarketHBCharity
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC95c1dyh8wKt8ejs0QzWnBw/featured
• Facebookfacebook.com/marketharboroughandthebowdenscharity
• Instagraminstagram.com/explore/locations/237102383103441/market-harborough-and-the-bowdens-charity
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/market-harborough-the-bowdens-charity

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Market Harborough & The Bowdens Charity