Rural Development

A competition for a new national forest will be launched by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs to help people across the country access nature. Communities will be able to put their local areas forward, with applicants assessed on how the new forest would transform the local area, create habitats for wildlife and help the country meet net zero targets. The winning location will receive up to £10 million to help fund the proj...

Farmers in England can now apply for grants of between £25,000 and £250,000 to improve their slurry infrastructure. The funding is being provided by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) as part of its efforts to tackle water pollution, improve air quality and make better use of organic nutrients. The grants can be used to replace, expand, build extra and cover slurry stores, and to purchase equipment such as separat...

The King Charles III Charitable Fund is set to launch its Small Grants Programme in January 2024, continuing the legacy of former initiatives like the Prince's Countryside Fund. This new programme focuses on supporting projects that contribute to the environment, countryside, social inclusion, health and wellbeing, education, heritage and conservation. Each year, the fund will allocate grants of up to £5,000 to about 100 community-based orga...

The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs has announced that the Countryside Stewardship Facilitation Fund has opened to applications. The £2.5 million scheme encourages collaboration and knowledge-sharing amongst the farming community in England. To apply, farmers, foresters and other land managers must submit plans showing how they will work together and share knowledge to protect and enhance their local environment. Each group c...

Buckinghamshire Council has launched a new fund to support small rural businesses. The Bucks Rural Business Grant programme will provide £1.8 million in capital grants over two years to help micro and small enterprises in rural areas to grow and create jobs. Businesses can apply for grants of up to £300,000 to cover the cost of building works and equipment, and can be used for a variety of purposes, including net zero infrastructure, farm di...

Charities and not for profit organisations in the UK can apply for small grants of up to £10,000 to address urban and rural deprivation in the UK. The grants can be used to help cover their for core costs, salaries, running and project costs to deliver essential services. The funding is being provided by the Trusthouse Charitable Foundation’s small grants programme and to be eligible for a grant, charities and not for profit organisations...

The Ashley Family Foundation, a UK-based charity, has launched a new funding round for small charities in Wales, in particular mid-Wales. The scheme is open to registered charities and Community Interest Companies with an annual income of less than £2million and provides revenue grants of up to £10,000. The foundation is particularly interested in funding projects that support the arts as well as wider social and community projects.. Project...

The Forestry Commission, in partnership with the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, has launched a new fund to cover the training costs for short, practical forestry courses for individuals who want to start or develop a career in forestry. The Forestry Training Fund offers grants in the range of £150 to £3,000 to support a wide range of accredited training courses, teaching skills like chainsaw maintenance, coppicing, woodlan...

From early April, environmental groups, local authorities, charities, public bodies, individual landowners, and organisations will be able to apply for funding to restore degraded peatlands in England through the Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme (NCPGS) Restoration grants. This competitive grant scheme aims to restore the whole hydrological unit of a peatland and reduce emissions from peat, with a goal of restoring 35,000 hectares of d...

The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) is making £12.5 million in funding available for agriculture and horticulture automation and robotics to improve farming productivity. In partnership with UK Research and Innovation, Defra will award match-funding of between £500,000 and £1.5 million to businesses, researchers, farmers and growers for collaborative development projects which will boost productivity, reduce labour...

Grants of up to £200,000 are available to charities, social enterprises and other not-for-profit groups in rural villages in Northern Ireland who want to tackle poverty and social isolation by developing a sustainable use for a disused historic building in their village. The Village Catalyst Grant Programme will help to address dereliction and local need by supporting rural communities to: carry out viability work (up to £10,000); develop th...

Rural businesses such as farms, village halls and pubs will be able to bid for a share of £110 million in funding as part of a new Government scheme to support the rural economy in England. The funding will be delivered by local authorities to support schemes that create jobs and increase countryside productivity. This could include support for farm businesses looking to diversify by opening a farm shop, wedding venue or tourism facilities; i...

Virgin Money PLC has launched a new £200 million fund to help the UK agriculture sector transition to net zero. The Agri E Fund will offer low-cost loans for farmers to invest in suitable adaptations to their businesses which will reduce their on-farm emissions. Loans with 0% arrangement fees can be provided when farmers complete a carbon audit, and are looking to borrow over £50,000 to invest in emission reducing initiatives, like renewable...

Farmers in England can now apply for funding of between £25,000 and £300,000 to help them boost their businesses and add extra value to their produce. The funding is being made available through the new £30 million Farming Investment Fund (FIF) . Funded by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs the grants can be used to purchase equipment to process, diversify and add value to their products after they have been harvested...

Grants of up to £200,000 are available to support charities, social enterprise and other not-for-profit groups in Northern Ireland with projects to tackle rural poverty and social isolation by developing a sustainable use for a disused historic building in their village. The Department for Communities, in partnership with the Department for Agriculture Environment and Rural Affairs, the Architectural Heritage Fund, and the Northern Ireland Ho...

The Forestry Commission is inviting applications from landowners, land managers and public bodies in England who are interested in planting new woodland. The Woodland Creation Planning Grant offers funding of up to £30,000 to cover the costs of producing a woodland creation design plan for the application. There are two application stages: stage 1 – identifying constraints and opportunities which may affect the proposed planting. Funding of...

Grants of up to £3,000 are available to enable rural pub owners, licensees, and local communities to work together to help support and sustain local services in England, Scotland and Wales. Pub is the Hub’s Community Services Fund will assist projects which support the needs of local communities by using pubs to offer a new service or replace a service that has already been lost, such as a local shop, library, post office or community centr...

Households and businesses in rural areas can apply for funding to help with poor broadband speeds as part of a new £250 million Government initiative. The Government will provide vouchers worth up to £1,500 for homes and £3,500 for businesses to support the cost of installing new gigabit-capable connections where existing broadband speeds are less than 100Mbps. Applications can only be made when two or more residents or eligible small or me...