Deadline October 11th, 2022 (opens September 1st).
Supporting Rural Communities is The Prince’s Countryside Fund (PCF)’s flagship grant programme, awarding £500,000 each year to support projects that enhance the viability and sustainability of rural communities.
The PCF is inviting applications for grants of up to £25,000 over two years, for projects that will create a long-term difference in rural communities across the UK.
Applicants must be from properly constituted, non-profit organisations with an income of less than £500,000. Especially welcome are applications from groups and organisations with projects in hamlets, villages and small market towns.
The funders are interested in community-led projects (fledgeling ideas and projects are of particular interest) pursuing solutions that improve the viability and resilience of their community, achieving one or more of the following programme aims:
- Support people to resolve existing and emerging community issues, circumstances, and priorities in their locality.
- Build rural community resilience.
- Develop innovative and replicable projects.
- Enable leadership and community planning.
- Improve the economic or social resilience of a rural community.
- Reduce isolation for people living in rural areas through improving service provision.
- Create a self-sufficient rural community fit for the future.
There are no strict criteria on what organisations can apply for, but they must demonstrate demand for the project from the community it will be serving.
Please note that there are some things that PCF cannot fund, which include:
- purchase of buildings or land
- planning permission/ building regulations
- building projects where planning permission is not yet in place
- projects taking place in a location where the purchase/ rent agreement is not complete
- statutory requirements
- technical energy projects where a specialist funder might be more appropriate
- projects where PCF’s contribution makes up less than 10 per cent of the total project cost
- projects that aim to promote a religion
- the purchase of food
- working capital
- loans.
Applications for village hall and other community asset renovation projects will be considered, as long as the applicant can clearly demonstrate why the project is needed, and that there is no similar provision provided by other assets in the community.