Grants & Funding
View the latest information on current grant and funding opportunities.
Malvern Hills Tourism Grant Scheme
Funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, the aim of the scheme is to help develop the local tourism industry within a number of specific areas to help increase visitor numbers and improve the visitor experience.
Eligible businesses can apply for a 50% match-funded grant.
Cultural/Heritage Attractions - Up to £5,000
For Cultural/Heritage Attractions which need repair or restoration and/or towards a feasibility study for improving the visitor experience.
Attractions – Up to £2,500
Attractions and event venues can apply for a grant for projects which will help to improve accessibility for visitors with disabilities helping to ensure The Malverns is a visitor destination suitable for all. They can also apply for funding towards projects which help to improve the visitor experience and increase visitor numbers to the district.
Sustainable Tourism – Up to £2,500
The grant scheme will allow for more grants to be provided towards projects enabling tourism and hospitality businesses to improve their green credentials across the Malvern Hills district.
Festivals and Events - Up to £1,000
Town Centre festival organisers can apply for a grant to assist with festival development activities.
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Malvern Hills Rural Fund
A new fund worth £500k is being launched by Malvern Hills District Council (MHDC) to help support rural businesses and communities.
Companies, community businesses and social enterprises can bid for a share of the Malvern Hills Rural Fund. The fund is being made available to support new small or micro businesses in rural areas, including helping farmers to diversify into other sectors, and growing tourism. The money can only be used to fund physical projects such as new buildings or renovations and not for staff or day-to-day running costs. It will be released in stages over the next two years, with the first round of funding available to bid for now. Individual grants of between £2,500 and £25,000 are on offer, but businesses will be expected to match 50 per cent of the total cost of a project.
Expressions of interest must be submitted through the MHDC website using the online form. Shortlisted bids will then be invited to work up a full application.
The funding comes from the Government’s Rural England Prosperity Fund and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
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Business Growth Grant - Worcester City Council
Businesses, that have been trading longer than 12 months can apply for a grant of up to £2,500 (if home-based) or £5,000 (if in commercial premises), subject to meeting the scheme criteria. The minimum grant is £1,000 and must be matched from own resources. This means your project must cost a minimum of £2,000.
The grant can be used towards ‘one off’ costs such as equipment, machinery, building works, premises refurbishment, fixtures and fittings, website construction or software, and other similar costs to help the business to grow.
The business must be based in Worcester. Only one grant is available per business or applicant. Applicants will need to demonstrate that they would not be able to bring the growth proposal forward without the help of this grant.
This project is funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. The Business Growth Grant is part of Worcester City Council’s allocation of £2.96m.
For further information and to request an application pack, contact the Worcester City Council Economic Development team either by email economy@worcester.gov.uk or call 01905 722106.
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Wychavon Rural Fund
A new fund worth £1 million is being launched by Wychavon to help support the district’s rural businesses and communities. Companies, charities, community groups, town and parish councils and other organisations can bid for a share of the Wychavon Rural Fund.
In total £420,000 is being made available to support new small or micro businesses in rural areas, including helping farmers to diversify into other sectors, and growing tourism.
Another £670,000 is available to support rural communities with projects such as community energy schemes, improving local green spaces, upgrading walking and cycling routes and cultural or heritage projects. The money can only be used to fund physical projects such as new buildings or renovations and not for staff or day-to-day running costs. It will be released in stages over the next two years, with the first round of funding available to bid for now. Individual grants of between £2,500 and £25,000 are on offer, but businesses will be expected to match 50 per cent of the total cost of a project and other organisations 30 per cent.
Expressions of interest must be submitted through Wychavon’s website using the online form. Shortlisted bids will then be invited to work up a full application.
The funding is part of Wychavon’s share of the Government’s Rural England Prosperity Fund and UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
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Net Zero Worcestershire
Grant funding is available to help Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Worcestershire to implement energy saving initiatives including LED lighting, heating and insulation and renewables. The initiative aims to support Worcestershire SMEs to make the transition towards a sustainable and low-carbon future.
Funding available in your area:
Bromsgrove District: £1,000 to £10,000
Malvern Hills District: £1,000 to £8,000
Redditch Borough: £1,000 to £10,000
Worcester City: £1,000 to £4,000
Wychavon District: £1,000 to £5,000
Wyre Forest District: £1,000 to £10,000
Grants are awarded on a competitive and match-funded basis, meaning the SME will need to provide at least 60% of the total cost of the project. Amounts available is subject to change.
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National Lottery Grants for Heritage
National Lottery Heritage Grants form part of the National Lottery Heritage Fund's new 10-year strategy, Heritage 2033, that aims to invest £3.6 billion across the UK with grants ranging from £10,000 up to £10 million.
Grants are available to support projects of up to five years that care for and sustain heritage in the UK. This could include nature and habitats, historic buildings and environments, or cultures, traditions and people’s memories.
Two levels of funding are available:
- Grants from £10,000 to £250,000 for projects of no more than five years in duration.
- Grants from £250,000 to £10 million for projects of no more than five years in duration (excluding the development phase).
Applications from:
- £10,000 to £100,000 will be accepted from not-for-profit organisations, private owners of heritage and partnerships.
- £100,000 to £10 million will be accepted from not-for-profit organisations and partnerships led by not-for-profit organisations.
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Association of Independent Museums (AiM) Training Grants
The Association of Independent Museums (AiM) is offering grants of up to £350 for member museums across the UK to develop the skills and expertise of their paid or voluntary workforce.
The AIM Training Grants Programme will support fees, accommodation (where distance travel is involved) and environmentally sensitive travel costs towards:
- Attendance of courses, seminars, and workshops
- Online remote courses and training
- A bursary to attend the AIM National Conference in June 2024
- Subject specialist training
- Museum study visits
- Mentoring placements
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Biffa Award - Partnership Grants Scheme
The Partnership Grants Scheme offers funding to not-for-profit organisations with projects that address one of the following themes:
- Built Environment projects should restore, modernise and/or improve facilities such as cultural, heritage or visitor centres. The facility should be inclusive and promote learning, curiosity, and participation to large numbers of visitors on a national scale.
- Natural Environment projects should restore and/or improve the environment and the natural systems or habitats that support it. Projects should be working to Biodiversity 2020: A Strategy for England’s Wildlife and Ecosystem Services, its predecessor, or a Local Biodiversity Action Plan.
Grants of between £250,000 and £1 million are available for projects that finish within one year.
Not-for-profit organisations in England and Northern Ireland can apply.
Applicants must:
- Be a fully constituted, charitable or not-for-profit organisation with no share capital.
- Enrol with ENTRUST as an Environmental Body to access funding. An administrative fee of £100 is payable to ENTRUST for this.
- Be located within 15 miles of a significant Biffa Operation or active Biffa Landfill site.
- Be located within 10 miles of any licensed landfill site (not necessarily owned by Biffa Group Limited) in England and Northern Ireland.
- Have a project site open for a minimum of 104 days of full public access to the project per year.
- Have, if not the landowner, a signed landowner agreement in place agreeing to access for maintenance, surveying and monitoring for a period of not less than 25 years.
- Have a management plan in place for the key species/habitat(s) involved for each site, if applying for a Natural Environment themed grant.
- Have all planning permissions in place, if required.
Applicants should check their project location's eligibility using Biffa Awards Postcode Checker which can be found on the Biffa Award's website.
Groups and their projects must be eligible for enrolment and registration with the scheme regulator ENTRUST. There will be conditions of any grant approved.
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The Esmee Fairbairn Collections Fund
The Esmée Fairbairn Collections Fund is run by the Museums Association (MA) and has been developed from the Esmée Fairbairn Museum and Heritage Collections strand and the MA's Effective Collections programme.
The fund aims to:
- Support work that furthers the established strategic aims of the applicants in relation to diversity, equity and inclusion, and that are ready to use their collections and the funding to support social and climate justice, in ways that are relevant to local contexts and relationships.
- Offer core funding to museums, to offer greater flexibility and support embedded change in organisations.
- Enhance its learning from grantees and share this with the wider museum sector, for example foregrounding leading practice in funded museums and undertaking research with action learning sets.
Grants of £40,000–£100,000 are available over a period of up to three years. The funders expect to award around 12 grants per year in the two funding rounds in 2024.
Applicants who are seeking funding as part of a wider programme or capital project should inform the Museums Association about the wider context of the planned work and be clear about how its funding makes a difference.