Google Ad Grants Management for UK Charities

What Google Ad Grants gives you

Google Ad Grants is an in-kind advertising programme. Google's Ad Grants site says each qualifying nonprofit can access up to US$10,000 a month in search ads shown on Google.com. It isn't cash: it is ad credit that only works for text ads on Google Search, under stricter rules than paid accounts. Used well, it can bring donors, volunteers, service users and campaign supporters to your website for free.

Many charities get the grant and then spend very little of it, or lose it to a policy breach. Our job is to keep the account compliant and spend the grant on searches that matter to your mission. Charities with a paid budget too can run a normal Google Ads account alongside the grant.

Who is eligible in the UK

Google for Nonprofits' eligibility page lists the UK routes as:

• registration with the Charity Commission (England and Wales), OSCR (Scotland) or the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland;
• recognition by HMRC as a charity for tax purposes, or exempt charities;
• churches.

All organisations must also be verified as a nonprofit by Goodstack, Google's validation partner, and agree to Google for Nonprofits' additional terms. Three types of organisation are excluded: governmental bodies, hospitals and healthcare organisations, and schools, academic institutions and universities. Google notes that charitable arms or foundations linked to healthcare and education bodies can still qualify. Google also has a separate website policy for grant accounts, so we check your site against it before you apply.

The order is: join Google for Nonprofits, get verified, then activate Ad Grants from inside it.

The rules that get accounts suspended

Google's Ad Grants policy compliance guide and mission-based campaigns policy set rules paid accounts don't have:

1. 5% click-through rate. The account as a whole must keep a CTR of at least 5% each month. Missing it for two consecutive months leads to temporary deactivation.
2. Conversion tracking. Accounts must have at least one meaningful conversion action and record at least one conversion a month. Time on site or homepage visits can't count as conversions.
3. Bidding. Accounts created on or after 22 April 2019 must use conversion-based smart bidding: Maximise conversions, Maximise conversion value, Target CPA or Target ROAS. Google's tips page says these strategies let the system bid above the programme's US$2.00 maximum bid when performance merits it.
4. Keywords. No single-word keywords, except your brand, recognised medical conditions, acronyms and a short exceptions list (such as 'donate' and 'volunteer'). No overly generic keywords. No keywords with a Quality Score of 1 or 2.
5. Account structure. At least two unique sitelinks, and geo-targeting set to where your services or supporters are.
6. Programme survey. Google sends grant accounts a programme survey, and its compliance guide says it must be answered, with the notification email opted in to receive it.

Google says accounts that break programme policies can be suspended automatically without notice, so we check compliance monthly rather than waiting for a warning.

How we run a grant account

We build campaigns around what people actually search for: your services ('dementia support Nottingham'), fundraising and events, volunteering, and awareness topics where your content genuinely helps. Low-CTR keywords are paused before they drag the account down, automated rules pause any keyword whose Quality Score drops to 1 or 2, and conversion tracking records real actions such as donations, newsletter sign-ups, volunteer applications and referrals.

For the rest of your marketing, see marketing for charities, including email for supporter journeys.

Grant accounts also suit seasonal pushes. Awareness weeks, appeals and events can each have their own campaign, switched on when interest peaks and paused afterwards, so the grant isn't spread thinly across the whole year. Where the grant's limits get in the way, for example on competitive fundraising terms, we'll say so and explain what a small paid budget alongside it could add.

Price

Ad Grants management is from £150 a month + VAT. The grant budget itself is Google's in-kind credit, so the charity doesn't pay for the clicks. We'll confirm the monthly fee in writing before we start. If your grant account is suspended or barely spending, a one-off review at £45 an hour + VAT may be all you need.

What you get

• Eligibility check and help with the Google for Nonprofits and Ad Grants applications
• Campaigns built around your services, fundraising, volunteering and campaigns
• Meaningful conversion tracking (donations, sign-ups, enquiries) in Google Ads and GA4
• Keyword lists screened for single-word, generic and low Quality Score terms
• Monthly compliance checks against CTR, conversions, sitelinks and geo-targeting
• Reporting on how the grant was used and what it produced

How it works and what it costs

Google Ads management from £150 a month, social media management from £125 a month and email marketing from £95 a month, all + VAT. Ad spend is separate and paid to the platform. No long contracts.

1. Free review

   We look at your current ads, social, email and analytics, or your plans if you are starting out, and tell you plainly what we would change.

2. Plan and price

   You get a written plan with targets, budgets and a fixed monthly fee before anything starts.

3. Set up properly

   Tracking and consent first, then campaigns, audiences, content calendars or email flows, all in accounts you own.

4. Run and improve

   We manage it every week: search terms, bids, creative, posts and tests, cutting what does not pay and doing more of what does.

5. Report in plain English

   A monthly report on leads, sales and cost per result, not vanity numbers, with what we will do next.

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