£1.2m of UK shared prosperity funding is open for schemes and project proposals in South Staffordshire.
The funding is aimed at supporting projects and schemes for people and businesses in the community to thrive and grow.
The council is seeking expressions of interest from eligible organisations which meet the criteria relating to interventions, as detailed in our prospectus. This is for funds that have not already been allocated. This fund is separate to the Rural England Prosperity Fund which is available for small business growth, community projects and farm diversification in eligible areas.
The council developed an investment plan for each ‘pillar’ of intervention: supporting local business; communities and place; and people and skills.
The council is committed to ensuring that the outputs and outcomes of these projects are achieved.
If you have a project or scheme that meets the interventions detailed in our prospectus, we want to hear from you.
Any queries relating to the funding should be emailed to UKSPF@sstaffs.gov.uk
Eligible organisations can be either partnerships or individual organisations and can include voluntary, community, public and private sector organisations.
Projects must be delivered by a legally constituted organisation that can receive public funds and the expression of interest can cover more than one investment priority or programme.
All schemes and projects should take account of the fund’s objectives, investment priorities, and interventions, focusing on the specific outputs and outcomes required for South Staffordshire.
Ideas of what could be considered are provided below.
However, these examples are not exhaustive - please email any imaginative ideas you may have, with a contact number, to UKSPF@sstaffs.gov.uk
Delivery of adult day care sessions to support the local community, plus creation of both voluntary and paid positions.
Charity-led schemes: Property adaptation and delivery of adult day care sessions to support the local community, including the creation of both voluntary and paid positions.
County park project, secure parking, EV points, cycle sheds, play equipment and café - creating open spaces for local use with employment
Renewable training scheme, equipment for student and apprenticeship skills attainment.
Medium-sized business extension, additional investment to increase useable sustainable floorspace for sales and new employees
Activities such as enrichment and volunteering to improve opportunities and promote wellbeing.
The residual fund will need to be spent by March 2025.
All projects must be completed by December 31st, 2024, to enable all reporting and project spend to be finalised by March 31st, 2025.
Due to timescales please ensure planning permission is in place or applied for immediately.
South Staffordshire Council has made £780k capital and £420k revenue available for projects and schemes in the district.
The award values for this fund have been set. The maximum request is £70,000*. The minimum request is £2,000 for organisations and £7,000 for businesses. Funding will typically be limited to a maximum of 70% of the project’s total eligible costs for organisations or 60% for businesses with 50% of the cost for low/zero carbon energy infrastructure (*up to £100,000 in line with the Green Solutions support for businesses or in specific cases.
The projects/schemes that can deliver the best outputs and outcomes for the district will be funded - we want to hear your ideas.
Funding will not automatically be offered. All expressions of interest will be carefully assessed and those that meet with the government interventions and the district’s needs will be invited to complete a full application.
The council is seeking project ideas that deliver the greatest economic, environmental and social benefits to the community.
For further information please submit queries to UKSPF@sstaffs.gov.uk
Further guidance for information:
Any projects or costs where there is a statutory duty to provide them (work that has to be done by law) will not be funded.
Please also consider what funding your organisation or business has received in the last three financial years, including any expression of interest funding request amount. If the total value is over £315,000 please contact us at UKSPF@sstaffs.gov.uk with details to check subsidy control guidance.
Before completing an expression of interest, please read the full eligibility criteria found on this page including further guidance
Remember to check the UK Shared Prosperity Fund Interventions, Objectives, Outcomes and Outputs – England, and tell us which government priority intervention(s) you think your project fits, and what the expected outputs and outcomes are.
Please email any questions to UKSPF@sstaffs.gov.uk
