Applications for the Weston Charity Awards 2026 are now open.
Deadline for applications is 5pm Friday 9 January 2026.
Stage 1: Applications
When filling out the application form:
- Please explain how your charity would use the Awards to make a difference to your beneficiaries.
- Ensure that the person applying is a senior authorised representative of your charity, such as the CEO or equivalent.
- Have your charity numbers available, by which we mean the numbers as registered with the Charity Commission and Companies House respectively, and ready to include in the application form.
- Please tell us how you found out about the Awards and be as specific as possible.
Stage 2: Longlisting
As part of the first-round assessment, we may request additional information about your charity’s finances or services. This must be returned to Pilotlight within seven days.
If your application progresses, you will be asked for your availability to attend a longlist meeting over Teams.
Charities successfully placed on the longlist will be contacted by Pilotlight by early February.
Stage 3: Longlist meeting
If your charity is longlisted, you will be invited to a Teams meeting with Pilotlight. These meetings will take place in February.
Please ensure both a senior representative (CEO or equivalent) and the Chair of Trustees are available to attend.
This meeting is an opportunity for both parties to explore whether the Weston Charity Awards, Pilotlight 360, and your charity are a good fit. You may be asked to provide further supporting information in advance.
All information shared throughout the process will be treated confidentially by Pilotlight and the Garfield Weston Foundation.
Stage 4: Shortlisting & Final selection
Following the longlist meetings, a shortlist of charities will be selected. Feedback from these meetings will be presented to the Awards Judging Panel, which is made up of the Garfield Weston Foundation’s Board of Trustees, in May.
Up to 22 charities will be selected as Award winners based on:
- The charity’s ambition for the future
- The impact it makes on people in need
- Its readiness to engage with and benefit from Pilotlight 360
- A desire to grow and develop its work
Once the Awards winners are selected, they are informed shortly afterwards.
Winners receive a Winners Agreement at the beginning of the relationship which outlines expectations during the year.
The Awards will be formally launched at an event in June, where winners will meet Pilotlight, the Garfield Weston Foundation, and fellow award recipients.
Stage 5: Pilotlight 360
After the Awards is launched, each of the 22 winners are matched with a Pilotlight Project Manager and four empathetic business leaders called ‘Pilotlighters’ for their Pilotlight 360 project.
The programme will begin between July and December. Meetings take place once a month and are a mix of in-person and virtual meetings, over eight months. Those meetings in person are held in Pilotlight’s London office.
Charity leaders also attend two peer-to-peer support sessions with fellow award winners over the year to share good practice and learn from each other.
Stage 6: Weston Charity Awards Celebration Event
Once all the winners have come to the end of the Pilotlight 360 programme, everyone gathers to celebrate their achievements. A final Awards Celebration Event will take place in October of the following year.
Need more information before you apply?
Attend an info session and get your questions answered
If you have more questions about the Awards, please take a look at our Frequently Asked
Questions.