Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF) - Grant Programme

Thank you for your interest in the Rural England Prosperity Fund -

PLEASE NOTE - tHE north devon and TORRIDGE BASED SCHEMEs are NOW CLOSED to new applications. 

The Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF) grants are funded by both North Devon Council and Torridge District Council through the central governments wider UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKPSF).

The Rural Fund is integrated into the UK Shared Prosperity Fund which supports productivity and prosperity in places that need it most. It supports activities that specifically address the particular challenges rural areas face.

The scheme is for small and micro businesses, with up to 50 employees with a turnover of less than £10m.

Eligible local business will be able to apply for grants under 3 key Investment Priorities therefore you project must be a fit for one of the following:

1.1a). Funding for net zero infrastructure -  Capital funding for net zero infrastructure for rural businesses e.g., energy saving equipment, energy efficiency measures and or processes (excludes electrical vehicle charging points).

1.1b). Diversification of farm businesses outside of agriculture - Capital funding for the diversification of farm businesses outside of agriculture to encourage, expansion, or scale up of these businesses where this involves converting farm buildings into other commercial or businesses uses

1.2). Growing the local social economy and supporting innovation - Funding (capital grants) for growing the local social economy and supporting innovation.

Please note: this investment priority is only for: Community businesses  or Social enterprises (Please see the Application guidance for more details).

 1.3). Developing and promoting the visitor economy - Funding (capital grants) for the development and promotion (both trade and consumer) of the visitor economy, such as:

• local attractions
• trails
• tourism products more generally

There will be a requirement for all applicants to be able to provide match funding of 10-20% dependant on the total value of the items. It may help your application score if you can offer above the compulsory match requirements.

The REPF scheme is able to provide funding to assist with the purchase of capital items* (e.g., equipment) that will help business to achieve one or more of the following outputs:

• Create jobs
• Introduce new to the firm technologies or process (with a focus on net zero)

This grant programme will be open until 30.11.2024 or until all funds are allocated.  Please note if we are oversubscribed, then we reserve the right to close the application window early and we will publish a notification in advance on this webpage before doing so. There is no guarantee of a grant, and the application process will be competitive.

Grant eligibility will be determined by the address where the business is registered e.g., address on business bank statement and which local authority the business pays rates to. Please ensure that you click through to the correct page for where your business is registered under either the pages for North Devon Council or Torridge District Council. 

For North Devon Council based businesses please click on the NDC button on the top right of the page to download the Application Form and Application Guidance. 

For Torridge District Council based businesses please click on the TDC button on the top right of the page to download the Application Form and Application Guidance. 

Please ensure that you:

• Read the Application Guidance in full before contacting us regarding eligibility queries.
• Use the Application Guidance when completing the Application Form and ensure that you submit all of the required supporting documents.

We cannot accept applications or supporting documents by post. When submitting your application please ensure you submit this along with your contact details and ensure all documents are sent within the one submission email to REPF@northdevonplus.co.uk

*If your project is larger scale and aiming to create a significant number of employment opportunities  and therefore requiring additional investment,  then please contact us via REPF@northdevonplus.co.uk