This page summarises the current opportunities to access funding for green infrastructure projects across the UK. The items are listed under the types of group or organisation that is eligible to apply:
- Land managers and farmers
- Local authorities and public bodies
- Communities
- Not-for-profit organisations
If you aware of any green infrastructure funding opportunities in the UK that are not listed below, please let us know by emailing jessica.fieth@tcpa.org.uk.
| Fund name | Description | Area covered | Timescales | Further information |
| For land managers and farmers | ||||
| Countryside Stewardship | The Countryside Stewardship funding scheme offers various financial incentives for farmers, woodland owners, foresters and land managers to look after and improve the environment. | England | Various deadlines (See individual grant schemes for info) | here |
| Woodland creation and maintenance grant | This grant is available to land managers looking to create new areas of woodland on the land they manage. This is part of the Forestry Commission’s Countryside Stewardship fund. | England | Ongoing | here |
| Woodland tree health grant | This is a capital grant for farmers and land managers to restock or improve woodland after tree health problems. The grant is a one-off payment towards the cost of either restocking woodland after a tree health problem or felling diseased trees or rhododendron control. This is part of the Forestry Commission’s countryside stewardship fund. | England | Ongoing | here |
| Woodland management plan grant | This is a capital grant for farmers and land managers to produce a woodland management plan that meets UK Forestry Standard requirements. The plan must cover at least 10 years. This is part of the Forestry Commission’s countryside stewardship fund. | England | Ongoing | here |
| Woodland Creation Offer | Landowners, land managers and public bodies can apply to the England Woodland Creation Offer for support to create new woodland, including through natural colonisation, on areas as small as 1 hectare. | England | Ongoing | here |
| Sustainable Farming Incentive | This scheme will pay farmers to manage their land in an environmentally sustainable way and deliver public goods such as water quality, biodiversity, animal health and welfare and climate change mitigation. The scheme is made up from a set of standards. Each standard is based on a feature like hedgerows or grassland, and contains a group of actions that the farmer needs to do – the farmer will be paid for doing the actions they choose within each standard. This will be part of the wider Environmental Land Management scheme. | England | Upcoming (due to be launched in 2022) | here |
| Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme | This scheme provides funding to restore peatlands in the uplands and lowlands of England. Applications must contribute to the scheme’s objectives which are to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, restore degraded peat and provide wider environmental benefits. There are two types of grants available, a restoration grant and a discovery grant. This is part of the Forestry Commission’s Nature for Climate Fund. | England | Ongoing | here |
| Local Nature Recovery scheme | This scheme will pay for locally-targeted actions to make space for nature in the farmed landscape and the wider countryside, alongside food production. It will pay for measures which will contribute towards reversing the decline in biodiversity, improving water quality, net zero, building the resilience of the environment to climate change, improving air quality, natural flood management, coast erosion risk mitigation and heritage and access. The full list of options, the scheme rules and proposed payment rates will be published later in 2022. This will be part of the wider Environmental Land Management scheme. | England | Upcoming (open to limited number in 2023, roll out across country by end of 2024) | here |
| Landscape Recovery scheme | This scheme will support landscape and ecosystem recovery through long-term projects, such as restoring wilder landscapes in places where it’s appropriate, large-scale tree planting and peatland and salt marsh restoration. This will be part of the wider Environmental Land Management scheme. | England | Open (deadline: 24 May 2022) | here |
| Woodland Creation Planning Grant | This grant can support landowners, land managers and public bodies to design new woodland larger than five hectares. The funding will support the gathering and analysis of information necessary to identify constraints and opportunities that may affect the proposed planting. This is part of the Forestry Commission’s Woods into Management Forestry Innovation Funds. | England | Ongoing, applications open year round | here |
| Woodland Carbon Code | This is the UK’s voluntary carbon standard for woodland creation projects. Companies can buy Woodland Carbon Units from verified Woodland Carbon Code projects to help compensate for unavoidable emissions. Landowners can sell the carbon sequestered in their woodland in the form of Woodland Carbon Units. This is part of the Forestry Commission’s Woods into Management Forestry Innovation Funds. | UK wide | Ongoing | here |
| Forestry Grant Scheme | Run by Scottish Forestry, this scheme offers financial support for the creation of new woodland and the sustainable management of existing woodland. There are a range of support options covering planting, woodland protection, harvesting and more, including one category on ‘Woods In and Around Towns’. | Scotland | Ongoing | here |
| Woods into Management Forestry Innovation Funds | Various funds to improve woodland habitat and increase their resilience to pest, diseases and climate change. Includes Timber in Construction Innovation Fund; Routes to Market for Ash Timber Innovation Fund; Temporary Infrastructure Innovation Fund and Regional Woodland Restoration Innovation Funds | England | Ongoing, deadline 09/05/2022 | here |
| National Peatland Action Programme- Peatlands grant funding | The development grant will enable individuals and organisations to: – explore if their peatland restoration project is feasible – develop a costed peatland restoration project by April 2023 – gather the information they will need to apply for future delivery grant funding rounds. | Wales | Deadline 04/05/2022 | here |
| For local authorities and public bodies | ||||
| Levelling up Fund | Funding will be invested in infrastructure that improves everyday life across the UK. Projects submitted that may include “improving high streets, parks and green spaces”. Capacity funding will be allocated to local authorities most in need of levelling up in England. I will also be allocated to all local authorities in Scotland and Wales, to help build their relationship with the UK Government. Capacity funding will also be available in Northern Ireland, further information to come in due course. | UK wide | Ongoing | Here |
| Levelling Up Parks Fund | £9 million to create over 100 new parks to ensure access to green space in urban areas to ensure equal access to parks in urban areas that are deprived of green space. | UK wide | Upcoming, to be launched soon | Here |
| Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme | This scheme provides funding to restore peatlands in the uplands and lowlands of England. Applications must contribute to the scheme’s objectives which are to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, restore degraded peat and provide wider environmental benefits. There are two types of grants available, a restoration grant and a discovery grant. This is part of the Forestry Commission’s Nature for Climate Fund. | England | Ongoing | here |
| Local Authority Treescapes Fund | Aimed at driving an increase in non-woodland tree planting across our landscapes. The fund is focused on replanting trees outside of woodlands including trees in hedgerows, parklands, riparian zones, urban areas, beside roads and footpaths as well as small linear woodlands, copses, and shelterbelts. | England | Open until 31 May 2022. | here |
| Urban Tree Challenge Fund | Aimed at levelling up access to nature across the country, planting trees in socially deprived urban areas with low canopy cover, in proximity to healthcare and educational facilities. | England | Open until 31 May 2022. | here |
| Tree Production Innovation Fund | Note: relevant to pubic bodies if partnered with private sector third party organisations. Designed to encourage the development and adoption of new technologies and ways of working that will enhance the quantity, quality and diversity of tree planting stock available for planting in England. | England | Open until 11 May 2022 | here |
National Peatland Action Programme- Peatlands grant funding | The development grant will enable individuals and organisations to: – explore if their peatland restoration project is feasible – develop a costed peatland restoration project by April 2023 – gather the information they will need to apply for future delivery grant funding rounds. | Wales | Deadline 04/05/2022 | here |
| For communities | ||||
| Community and Environment Fund | This fund supports communities facing disruption by the construction of Phase One (from London to West Midlands) and Phase Two (from the West Midlands to Crewe) of HS2. The fund focuses on projects initiated by the voluntary sector which will improve quality of life and the environment in affected communities. | England, HS2 route | Ongoing | here |
| Power to Change | This scheme provides grant funding to community led businesses that are tackling challenges in their local area. Previously funded projects include community gardens. | England | Ongoing | here |
| Community Ownership Fund | The Community Ownership Fund is intended to help ensure that communities across the UK can support and continue benefiting from the local facilities, community assets and amenities, such as local parks and sports facilities, most important to them. The fund is open to community and voluntary organisations with formal governance in place. | UK wide | Currently closed, but due to reopen in May 2022 | here |
| Grow Back Greener Fund | The 2021 Grow Back Greener Fund, co-funded by the Mayor of London and Thames Water, awarded £1.4m to 45 community projects that will create and enhance green spaces and increase climate resilience. | England (London only) | Currently closed, but due to reopen in 2022. | here |
| idverde Community Investment Fund | The idverde Community Investment Fund aims to empower local communities to deliver projects that improve their local green space or the public realm, enhance the local environment, and boost the wellbeing of local people. | UK wide | Ongoing | here |
| National Peatland Action Programme- Peatlands grant funding | The development grant will enable individuals and organisations to: – explore if their peatland restoration project is feasible – develop a costed peatland restoration project by April 2023 – gather the information they will need to apply for future delivery grant funding rounds. | Wales | Deadline 04/05/2022 | here |
| For not-for-profit organisations | ||||
| SUEZ Communities Trust | The Trust supports community and environmental improvement projects that provide a broad range of publicly accessible amenities which benefits a wide cross section of the community. In England, not-for-profit organisations can apply to the Landfill Communities Fund and there are three categories (public amenities; biodiversity; and historic buildings, structure or sites). In Scotland, not-for-profit organisations can apply to the Scottish Landfill Communities Fund and there are five categories (land reclamation; community recycling; public amenities; biodiversity; and historic buildings structures and sites). The funding for this scheme is contributed by SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK. | England and Scotland | Ongoing | here |
| Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme | This scheme provides funding to restore peatlands in the uplands and lowlands of England. Applications must contribute to the schemes objectives which are to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, restore degraded peat and provide wider environmental benefits. There are two types of grants available, a restoration grant and a discovery grant. This is part of the Forestry Commission’s Nature for Climate Fund. | England | Ongoing | here |
| Tesco Community Grants | Tesco Community Grants support local causes that focus on helping children and families across the UK, particularly projects which provide food and support to young people. The scheme is open to registered charities and not-for-profit organisations and is managed by Groundwork. | UK wide | Ongoing | here |
| Business and Local Economy Fund | This fund supports local economies facing disruption by the construction of Phase One (from London to West Midlands) and Phase Two (from the West Midlands to Crewe) of HS2. This fund is for interventions that will have a positive impact on local business and tourism, including schemes to improve the local public realm. Grants will range from £10,000 to £250,000. | England, HS2 route | Ongoing | here |
| Evergreen Fund | This fund is aimed at companies and social enterprises that are focused on delivering measurable, beneficial, and sustainable environmental impact. £100K per year will be dedicated to native tree planting. Applicants should get in touch if they have a venture that meets the fund’s investment criteria. The Evergreen Fund is funded by Ground Control. | UK wide | Ongoing | here |
| ENTRUST | ENTRUST is the regulator of the Landfill Communities Fund. Not-for-profit organisations can enrol with ENTRUST as Environmental Bodies to receive funding to deliver projects which provide benefits for communities and the environment in the vicinity of a landfill site. Alternatively, existing Environmental Bodies can distribute funds and a list of these can be found on the ‘Funder Search’ page on the ENTRUST website. | England and Northern Ireland | Ongoing | here |
National Peatland Action Programme- Peatlands grant funding | The development grant will enable individuals and organisations to: – explore if their peatland restoration project is feasible – develop a costed peatland restoration project by April 2023 – gather the information they will need to apply for future delivery grant funding rounds. | Wales | Deadline 04/05/2022 | here |
Note: the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will be launched in April 2022. It seeks to replace the EU structural funds and will help level up and create opportunity across the UK for people and places. Part of the focus is place-based targeting places in most need, supporting people and communities. More information will provided in due course.
There are other sites which also list funding opportunities for green infrastructure:
- Horticulture Week: lists a range of grant funding opportunities for people and organisations working to protect and/or improve green infrastructure across the UK. Further information here
- The Forestry Commission: has produced guidance listing a range of funding opportunities for land managers, such as local authorities, to create and manage tree planting and woodland projects. Further information here
- Greenspace Scotland: The greenspace Scotland website includes a dedicated ‘Fund your Project’ page which list a range of different grant schemes available to support the development of green infrastructure initiatives in Scotland. Further information here.
- SWEEP Investing in Nature for Health project: concise summary of the funding mechanisms available for GI and activities provided in those spaces. It includes examples of traditional and alternative funding streams and case studies that highlight their successful application. Further information here.
