About the Community Wealth Programme
Funding is available through the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority’s allocation of UK Shared Prosperity Fund to support community wealth building by:
Raising Awareness
- Increase our understanding about the prevalence and value of the social enterprise sector across North Yorkshire & York
- Increase awareness of the benefits of Community Wealth Building among stakeholders
Promoting Community Wealth Building (CWB)
- Enhance local economic resilience by supporting community ownership and control of assets
Encouraging Social Enterprise
- Support community businesses that prioritise social objectives alongside financial sustainability
As part of the overall CWB programme, funding is available to provide grants to eligible organisations that meet the programme’s priority objectives.
Objectives and Priorities
- The Community Wealth Building (CWB) grants fund aims to support the following priorities: CWB Innovation, Circular Economy, and Capacity Building and Social Enterprise Development Support
- The area of benefit is North Yorkshire and York
- Revenue funding is available for applications that meet the priorities of the Shared Prosperity Fund and that can demonstrate that the project will deliver the programme’s aim to promote community wealth building and encourage social enterprise
- The fund will focus on 3 key priority themes – CWB Innovation, Circular Economy, and Capacity Building and Social Enterprise Development Support
We are particularly looking for projects that:
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- Support the development of new community-led business models that address local needs
- Promote inclusive economic models that empower underrepresented groups
- Strengthen local supply chains and reduce economic leakage from communities
- Reduce waste through reuse, repair, and recycling initiatives
- Encourage local circular economy/community wealth building networks and collaborations
- Strengthen governance and leadership within social enterprises
- Enable new social enterprises to launch and scale through tailored support
Themes
Community Wealth Building Innovation
The piloting of new models of local economic development that are rooted in place and that aim to build inclusive, generative economic models that maximise social value, strengthen local networks, and empower communities to take greater control of local assets and resources.
Example Projects
- Initiatives that develop partnerships to understand and optimise social value and build community wealth for your place
- Initiatives that embed innovative community-led business models into your local economy
- Pilot projects, feasibility or action led research projects that can help further your understanding of the potential of local community wealth building approaches for your community
- Commission a feasibility study or participatory research project to map local assets, anchor institutions, and economic flows. Use findings to co-design a Community Wealth Building Action Plan with local stakeholders
- Create a local “Social Value Lab” where public sector bodies, businesses, and VCSEs collaborate to map, measure, and enhance social value in procurement, commissioning, and service delivery
- Develop a digital app where residents trade skills (e.g., gardening for tutoring) or sign up as volunteers
- Pop-Up markets or ‘maker’ spaces for food producers and artists
- Local ‘trusted trader’ brokerage schemes to support ‘Buy Local’ initiatives
Circular Economy
Projects that promote waste reduction, reuse, and circular production models.
Example Projects
- Initiatives that promote community-led reuse and repair initiatives that extend the life of products and reduce landfill waste
- Initiatives that encourage local sharing economies, such as tool libraries, clothing swaps, or equipment pools
- Projects that use circular production models that minimise waste and use recycled or upcycled materials
- Projects that help to enable behaviour change through education, awareness campaigns, and community engagement on sustainable consumption
- Community Repair Café – monthly events where volunteers help residents repair broken items (electronics, clothing, furniture)
- Tool & Equipment Library for sharing, borrowing and loaning tools, gardening equipment, or other equipment for people or community groups
- Textile Reuse & Upcycling projects for unwanted clothes to be repaired, redesigned, or repurposed
- Food Waste Redistribution Scheme that sees surplus food from local shops redistributed to community fridges or food banks
- Refill & Zero-Waste Pop-Up Shops offering refillable household products (e.g., cleaning supplies, dry goods)
- Furniture Reuse & Upcycling Projects that collect and refurbish unwanted furniture for resale or donation
Capacity Building and Social Enterprise Development Support
Capacity building support for community-led social enterprises, helping them establish governance structures and develop sustainable business plans. Specialist advice and support with the formation and registration of new social enterprises ensuring compliance with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulations.
Example Projects
- Tailored support for specialist and technical advice for social enterprise organisations to help them grow, become sustainable and be legally compliant. Funding can be used for organisation wide training or one to one support and consultancy
Funding Opportunities and Requirements
Location and Focus
The activity must benefit communities located in North Yorkshire and York.
Your proposed project must be aligned with one or more of the above priorities: Community Wealth Building Innovation, Circular Economy and / or Social Enterprise Capacity Building.
Eligible Applicants
Your organisation must be a registered charity, not-for-profit organisation or business, a constituted community group or a social enterprise such as a Community Interest Company or Company limited by Guarantee.
Total Value of Programme
£125,000
Amount of Funding Available for Individual Applications
£5,000 – £25,000 per project
Match Funding
There is no match funding requirement.
Eligible Expenditure
All the funding must be for revenue purposes only:
- Room & equipment hire
- Any reasonable costs associated with running events/activities such as catering
- Small items of equipment
- Marketing and advertising
- Project management staffing costs and travel
- IT costs
- External advice and technical skills support
- Training
Ineligible Expenditure
The following costs are not eligible for funding under this programme. This list is not exhaustive:
- Capital expenditure such as building adaptations
- Large capital purchases such as vehicles
- Ongoing staff salaries
- Recoverable VAT
Financial Health
Applicants must provide evidence of financial stability, including recent accounts
Must demonstrate the ability to manage the grant funds responsibly
Compliance
As the funding window for this grant fund is short it is essential that organisations have any relevant consents – such as building/activity licences – in place prior to submitting their application.
Please note that applicants need to provide evidence of the following – where applicable to your project:
- Any licencing or other regulatory consents.
Previous Funding
Organisations that have previously received funding from the SPF programme must have successfully completed and reported on past projects to be eligible for new funding.
If the programme is over-subscribed, priority will be given to those organisations that have NOT previously received funding from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
Application Process
Open to Applications
3rd August 2025
Deadline for Applications
15th Spetember 2025
Application Submission
- Thoroughly read the grant specification available
- Complete the official grant application form, providing all required information
- Attach relevant documents such as proof of ownership or lease of the building, last year’s audited accounts
Review and Assesment
- Initial Review: The programme team will conduct an initial review to ensure all required information is provided
- Evaluation: Applications are evaluated based on criteria such as alignment with the aims of the priority themes, community impact, deliverability and sustainability
- Site Visit: A site visit may be conducted to assess the project’s viability and gather additional information
Decision and Notification
- Appraisal: The application will be internally officer appraised and then presented to an appraisal panel for a final decision
- Approval: Successful applicants are notified and provided with a grant agreement outlining the terms and conditions
- Feedback: Unsuccessful applicants receive feedback on their application and may be invited to reapply in future rounds if funding is available
Grant Agreement
- Grant Agreement: Sign the grant agreement, which includes the project timeline, reporting requirements, and payment schedule
- Grants will not be paid until the funding agreement has been signed by your authorised signatory
Monitoring Requirements
- Progress Reports: The applicant will be responsible for informing the funder of any material changes and/or serious delays to the project
- Final Report: A comprehensive final report upon project completion, summarising the outcomes, the intended benefits, any unexpected outcomes or benefits, the impact on the community, and any lessons learned. Applicants may be requested to provide a case study or to contribute to showcase events
- Site Visits: Periodic site visits may be carried out by the Programme Team to ensure compliance with the grant terms and to provide support
How to Apply
Applicants should complete the entire application form. If any assistance is required to complete the form, please use the contact form here.
If grant funding is awarded, the content of this completed application form will form the basis of an agreement between the successful organisation and York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority.
All funding received should be used solely for the purposes of the grant and for the activities outlined within this application. Any variation from these activities will require the written agreement.
Additional Requirements
- All applicants will be required to explain how their project delivers positive outcomes in respect of protecting the environment and reducing carbon emissions. Guidance can be found here: Routemap to Carbon Negative
- All applicants will be required to explain how they have ensured no discrimination will occur in respect of the legally protected characteristics identified in the Equalities Act 2010
- If successful applicants are procuring any external organisations to deliver any element of this project, they should undertake a transparent and proportionate process to ensure the expenditure delivers best value and the quality standards required for your project. For any individual works exceeding £5,000 you should be able to demonstrate that you have obtained competitive quotes and/or checked publicly available pricing, for example websites or catalogues
- All projects will be required to complete an evaluation which outlines the delivery of identified outputs and outcomes, as well as a broader assessment of the success of the project delivery and what might have been improved
- Funding will be paid up front, but organisations should keep records of their expenditure as you may be required to provide evidence of spending, in line with their approved application and funding agreement
- Funding will not be payable for any activity undertaken prior to the 1 October 2025 or after 31 March 2026
Programme Outputs and Outcomes
Each organisation will be required to outline the programme outputs and outcomes they will achieve through their project in their application. Organisations will be monitored on a quarterly basis against these outputs and outcomes.
All outputs and outcomes must be achieved by 31st March 2026. Final monitoring reports will be submitted by 11th April 2026.
The programme overall aims to deliver against the following:
Outputs:
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- Number of organisations enterprises receiving grants
- Number of organisations receiving non-financial support
- Number of local events or activities support
- Number of enterprises receiving non-financial support
- Number of feasibility studies developed as a result of support
- Number of community-led programmes as a result of support
Outcomes:
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- Increased number of users of facilities/amenities
- Increased number of new activities, events or services
- Increased number of projects arising from funded feasibility studies (number of projects)
Useful Documents
- York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority – Economic Framework
- York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority – Mayor’s Vision
- York and North Yorkshire Routemap to Carbon Negative – (Summary Document)
- Guide to Developing the Project Business Case – Chapter 2 outlines HM Treasury’s 5 Cases Methodology
- UK subsidy control regime: statutory guidance – GOV.UK
