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What is the Rural England Prosperity Fund?
The Rural England Prosperity Fund is a complementary funding pot to the UK Shared Prosperity Fund that was launched by the last UK Government as part of their Levelling Up agenda. A total of £110m in funding has been made available across financial years 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 in rural areas of England with aims for the fund to support small business capital projects and the enhancement of rural community infrastructure. The fund aims to help tackle specific challenges that rural areas face, such as lower productivity rates, poorer connectivity and poorer access to key services that are otherwise abundant in towns and built up urban areas. The funding period will end in March 2025.
One of the main areas for supporting business by the fund is to help new and established businesses in rural areas develop new products and facilities to be of wider benefit to the community and to also assist traditional farm businesses in diversifying their income streams away from just agricultural activities. It has been stipulated that funding must be spent on capital project and means that businesses need to spend any grant funding awarded assets that are expected to last long term, such as buildings or equipment.
The Rural England Prosperity Fund has been allocated to areas in funding size based upon the total number of people they have living in rural areas, so for example rural heavy areas such as Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly and North Yorkshire have received the highest funding allocations at around £5.5m each. In contrast, it comes as no surprise that areas such as Greater London and Greater Manchester received £0 funding from this pot, due to being large urban metropolitan areas with very little rural or farming activity.
What Rural England Prosperity Fund Schemes Are Available?
Below are some of the latest schemes that we have featured that businesses can now apply for.
i) North Northamptonshire Rural Business Grants – Round 4
Rural businesses in North Northamptonshire can apply for funding between £5,000 and £50,000 to spend on capital items for projects that focus on rural diversification, including business diversification away from traditional farming revenue streams and projects that will support the local visitor economy.
ii) Surrey Rural Business Grants
Rural businesses with fewer than 50 employees in the Waverley, Guildford and Tandridge areas in Surrey are eligible to apply for grants backed by the Rural England Prosperity Fund worth up to £50,000. Funding can be used for 50% of expenditure on capital items for projects that help diversify rural business activity, achieve net zero goals or encourage green tourism.
iii) Rutland Rural Enterprise Grants
Businesses in the Rutland area can apply for grants backed by the Rural England Prosperity Fund to pay for capital items on projects with a value of between £5,000 and £20,000. Up to 50% of project costs will be met by the grants and the scheme is particularly interested in funding rural business diversification, innovation and sustainable practices.
iv) Hinckley and Bosworth Rural England Prosperity Fund Grants
Small businesses in the Hinckley and Bosworth area are invited to apply for grants worth between £7.500 and £22,500 to improve the rural economy and help support rural communities. The scheme is in particular looking to support rural tourism sector businesses and micro-businesses that are setting up new activities that diversify away from traditional farming activities.
v) Chelmsford Rural England Prosperity Fund Grants
Rural businesses in Chelmsford can apply for funding to pay for capital items that will last more than 12 months for projects that aim to enhance local rural economies, develop and promote the visitor economy and rural circular economy projects.
vi) Test Valley Rural England Prosperity Fund Grants
Small businesses in the Test Valley region can apply for capital grants between £5,000 and £25,000 to apply for up to 50% match funding for projects that provide small scale investments to enhance rural business activity, develop and promote the local visitor economy and support rural innovation.
vii) West Berkshire Rural England Prosperity Fund Grants
Small rural businesses in the West Berkshire region can apply for funding worth between £10,000 and £40,000 to help them boost the local economy and go through sustainable growth. Up to 50% match funding on capital schemes is available for projects where businesses can purchase equipment that will last them longer than 12 months or be used to improve buildings.
What Businesses Have Been Awarded Funding From The Rural England Prosperity Fund?
Below are some of the latest businesses that have been awarded funding from local schemes backed by the Rural England Prosperity Fund.
i) Sixteen Businesses Awarded Rural Funding In The Fenlands
A total of 16 businesses from locations such as Chatteris, Gorefield, Guyhirn, Manea, March and Wisbech St Mary in the Fenland local authority have all received £5,000 each from the Rural England Prosperity Fund. Successful awarded projects have helped create up to 28 new jobs in the region and pay for business expansion, diversification and environmental sustainability activities.
ii) Northumberland Business Awarded £80,000 To Build Manufacturing And Research Facility
An engineering company in Prudhoe in the South of Northumberland has received an £80,000 capital grant to build a new cutting-edge research and manufacturing facility and has also led to the creation of 3 new full-time jobs. The funding was provided by the Capital Grant Investment Fund from the Northumberland Small Business Service, which is backed by the North East Combined Authority Investment Fund, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and also the Rural England Prosperity Fund, which is applicable due to Northumberland’s highly rural nature. It is worth noting that Northumberland received over £3m in Rural England Prosperity Funding allocation.
iii) Somerset Ice Cream Company Awarded Rural Grant
An ice cream business that is based between Bruton and Shepton Mallet has received grant funding from the Rural England Prosperity fund for Somerset and has seen a significant uplift in sales as a direct result. The ice cream business used the capital grant match funding to purchase equipment that helped increase its production capabilities and expand its market by signing up with a national distributor to sell ice creams beyond the local area.
iv) West Berkshire Awards Rural Grant Funding To Multiple Businesses
West Berkshire Council has announced that it has helped support a number of local rural businesses to expand as part of a funding round for the Rural England Prosperity Fund.
- A number of small equestrian and animal related businesses have received funding to help support local horse stables and horse racing activities, as well as money for provision for facilities for pets and horses, such as kennels, livery and pet health and welfare venues.
- A local farm looked to diversify its revenue streams and received £15,500 to set up glamping facilities in some of its fields, using renewable energy sources and tents made from natural materials. The farm created new seasonal jobs as a direct result to support the business expansion and helped increase tourism and the local economy by providing new accommodation types.
- A local furniture company received £40,000 to fund new machinery to help meet increased demand. The business was able to secure new long term contracts and also create 3 new full time jobs.
How To Apply For Local Rural England Prosperity Fund Opportunities
Most local authorities responsible for administering Rural England Prosperity Fund related schemes have a dedicated page that outlines opportunities that rural businesses can apply for. Each scheme provides details on eligibility criteria, how much funding is available and when the deadlines are. Interested businesses can also speak to dedicated rural grants advisors based at local authorities who can guide them through requirements and eligibility criteria to see if the funding is a match for a potential rural project and help them to apply. There are usually application forms available to download on the scheme pages as well as information on all supporting documents, such as financial statements and business plans that are required to get a chance of a successful funding application.
Want To Find Rural England Prosperity Fund Grants for Businesses In Your Local Area?
If you want to see the full set of Rural England Prosperity Fund grants currently available in your local area, please visit https://getbusinessgrants.com/
