Our 2026 Annual General Meeting brought together members and supporters to reflect on the past year's achievements, discuss key developments, and set our direction for the future. Thanks to everyone who attended the meeting and brought their questions and ideas to the room.
We thank Gerald, from Queer Migrants Unite, for sharing about their experience of participating in the 2025 Funding Working Group, which was in charge of redistributing our 2025 Roots Fund. We also appreciate the participation from Balraj, from South Asian Liberation Movement, who commented on the Radical Sharing Forum Roots of Resistance, that SALM and other Edge grantees co-organised and hosted in Manchester on 25 April 2026.
Annual General Meeting 2026: Reflecting on Our Progress and Looking Ahead
Our 2026 Annual General Meeting brought together members and supporters to reflect on the past year's achievements, discuss key developments, and set our direction for the future.
The meeting opened with a welcome from our Core Group and Staff members, who thanked everyone for their continued commitment and support. During the AGM, attendees received a summary of our 2025/26 reports of activities and news on coming events, approved a motion to consolidate the compensation scheme for Core Group members, and ratified the appointment of our new CG members.
- Read here our 2025-26 Annual Report of Activities and Accounts.
Finances and Internal Development
On Wednesday 24 July 2026 Edge members, supporters and grantees reviewed our Annual Accounts for the financial year 2025/26. Core Group member and Treasurer Patrick Boase presented an overview of the organisation's financial performance, noting that resources continue to be managed responsibly to support our mission and long-term sustainability. We want to thank Patrick for his voluntary work!
Edge members approved a resolution to consolidate the compensation scheme for Core Group members that request support. This meant adopting changes to our rules to include an explicit clause on the parameters under which members can be compensated for their contribution to our strategic group and introduce a policy to declare and resolve conflicts of interest. You can read the full motion and the policy here.
Members also ratified the proposal of expanding the Core Group with two new members. Following an internal evaluation at Edge we identified the need to strengthen our strategic work in fundraising and communications. With this aim we launched in February 2026 a call for members and supporters to express their interest to join the Core Group and provide support in these areas.
As result of the application process the CG and staff shortlisted Faiza Abdulkadir and Rosanna Wiseman for the roles and introduced them to our membership during the AGM. Faiza and Rosanna were welcomed by our members and are now actively supporting the mission of Edge and contributing to the overall governability of the organisation. Learn more about them and the rest of the team here.
The 2025 Roots Fund & Edge’s Participatory Grant-making model.
During the AGM our members also heard from Edge’s Organiser, Illa Valenzuela Oblitas, a quick report of our 2025 Roots Fund, which redistributed a total of £46K to grassroots organisations tackling Islamophobia, Afriphobia and the legacies of racial and colonial violence in the UK and Ireland. Illary shared in more detail how changes to our participatory model have helped to strengthen the participation of past grantees in deciding how funds are allocated.
After introducing a modest compensation for individual organisers and volunteers assessing applications for Edge Fund between 2023-24, in 2025 six grassroots groups, all Edge past grantees, were selected to join the Funding Working Group. They received an induction into Edge’s Participatory Grantmaking and collaboratively applied it to discuss and select our 2025 grantees. Groups that joined the FWG received a grant for their contribution to the funds redistribution.Their participation guaranteed that decisions were made by grassroots campaigners with lived experience and expertise in the areas of the Roots fund.
We thank Edge members Black Activists Rising Against Cuts, Migrant Women Press, Queer Refugees Unite, Unis Resist Border Controls, World Stages Now and Youth Front for Palestine for their commitment to support other grassroots organisations. Learn more about the Funding Working Group members here.
During the AGM we had the opportunity to hear from Gerald, a member of Queer Refugees Unite, who shared some learnings from this experience. In their own words:
“This was not only about distributing funds and scoring applications, but about learning from one another in the Funding Working Group, building solidarity and creating opportunities to expand our own networks, share experiences and work collectively. I am very grateful of being part of the Roots Fund. It was very positive and showed me what is possible when communities are trusted and given real voice in decision-making.”
Illary concluded the conversation introducing some learnings from our Radical Sharing Forum (RSF), a space for Edge grantees to come together and share skills and lessons from their experience as organisers. Since the COVID-19 pandemic these meeting went online as an annual event. In 2025 we allocated resources to host the RSF No Justice without Solidarity in London on 31 May 2025, co-organised with Somos Semillas (We are seeds), Not2Hassockfield, Lesbians and Gays Support the Migrants, World Stages Now and Dare Collective.
The Ayny Programme for Radical Sharing.
This year we are committed to develiver a programme of events. To do this we have introducedthe Ayni programme, encompassing 4 editions of the Radical Sharing Forum that include three online events and one in-person gathering. In the Andean worldview, Ayni refers to the radical act of sharing in community to build up networks of care and resistance. Brought forward by Illa, Ayni concentrates the aims of sharing and learning from each other to strengthen the work of Edge grantees.
As part of this series of events, we hosted a RSF in March. Led by Edge 2025 grantees Thanet for Palestine, People Against Rafael and Ealing Friends for Palestine, it focused on combating the criminalisation of solidarity with Palestine in the UK and its effects on community organising. This was followed by a gathering on 25th April in Manchester dedicated to community organising against the far right with panels and workshops led by Edge grantees Congolese Roots, People Against Rafael, Act Up, Fight Back, Queer Migrant Pride Fest, Magic Us and South Asian Liberation Movement.
Balraj, from SALM, spoke to members on his experience co-organising the RSF alongside other grantees, highlighting the collaborative work done by all organisers, from designing the day to planning the workshops and how rich the conversations were on the day, which allowed groups to make new contacts as they are already organising more activities locally. Critical to the Ayni programme is that it allows Edge to act as a platform that mobilises resources to cultivate networks among our grantees, supporters and the wider public.
Our third RSF of the year took place virtually with a workshop on the racist framework shaping the asylum system in the UK. The workshop was facilitated by Queer Migrant Pride Fest as a follow-up to their contribution to the Manchester gathering.
We are working to make material from each edition of the RSF available to everyone in coming newsletters, on our website and on social media. We will soon announce our fourth event, which will take place in Autumn this year. Stay tuned!
The AGM also provided an opportunity for members to ask questions, share ideas, and contribute to discussions about future priorities. These conversations reinforced our shared commitment to strengthening the organisation and continuing to meet the needs of those we serve. As we move into the funds redistribution of 2026, we remain focused on raising more funds, expanding our impact via a solid programme of membership engagement, and working together to continue supporting radical grassroots organisations that fall outside the scope of traditional philanthropy. Solidarity, not charity!
Announcements!
We have assembled the 2026 Funding Working Group that will support our coming funds redistribution. Dates of our Funding Round 18: The 2026 Roots Fund have been announced. The full guidelines and application will be soon available on our website.
We thank everyone who attended the AGM and everyone who continues to support Edge Fund. Your involvement and commitment are essential to our continued success, and we look forward to another productive and impactful year ahead.