Community Ownership Fund Next Closing Date – 31st January 2024

The government is providing £150 million over 4 years to support community groups to take ownership of assets and amenities at risk of being lost.

Voluntary and community groups can bid for funding to acquire important assets and run them for the benefit of the local community.

The next application window for the Community Ownership Fund has been confirmed to open 6^th December and will close 31^st January 2024.

Capital funding available is up to £2 million for all asset types, but they expect that most awards will be for up to £250,000 of capital funding.

Assets that could be supported through this fund:

• is at risk of loss without community intervention
• can be run viably and sustainably in community hands for the long-term benefit of the community
• if already owned, the asset requires essential renovations to be sustainable for the long-term benefit of the community.

A wide range of applicants can apply for support from this fund. These include community organisations and parish, town and community councils.

Match funding is required.  The requirement for match funding has be brought down from 50% to 20%.

Applicants can watch webinars via the My Community website about the following topics:

• How to create a strong Community Ownership Fund application – click here.
• How to raise match funding for your Community Ownership Fund project – click here.

Further information about the Fund can be found by clicking here.