Community Ownership Fund
The £150m Community Ownership Fund helps communities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to take ownership of assets at risk of closure.
The Community Ownership Fund helps to ensure that important parts of the social fabric, such as pubs, sports clubs, theatres and post office buildings, can continue to play a central role in towns and villages across the UK.
This Fund forms part of the UK Government’s levelling up agenda, helping to safeguard the small, but much-loved local assets on which we cannot put a price.
There is a long-term trend of communities losing assets that foster a sense of community pride and bring people together. This has a knock-on impact on people’s satisfaction with the place they live in, and the strength of local communities.
There is evidence that assets of this variety can be successfully and sustainably brought into community ownership. This both enables people to continue to benefit from the places that matter most to them and empowers communities to shape their local areas.
However, it's recognised that it can be hard for community groups to raise the initial funding required to buy the asset. The Community Ownership Fund will help enable community groups to overcome these barriers.
The Fund ensures that local people across the UK can support and continue benefiting from treasured local institutions whose future may be in doubt.
There is a two-stage application process for applicants.
Applicants first need to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) form and have this approved before being sent a link to the full application for the Fund. The EOI form will test whether a project is likely to be eligible through a pass/fail assessment based on the eligibility requirements.
This stage is designed to strengthen the application process by ensuring that applicants are fully aware of the eligibility requirements ahead of submitting a full application to the Fund.
The EOI stage will be always open so that applicants can submit an EOI form at a time that is right for their project.
If applicants pass the EOI stage, they can then apply in any bidding window suitable for the timings of their project. There will be three bidding windows each year to submit a full application to the Fund.
The current window opened on 15 February and will close on 14 April 2023 at 11:59am. If applicants apply in this window, the aim is that you will be informed of the outcome of your application in spring 2023.
Further information about to express your interest in applying can be found on the UK Government website.
To secure funding for your community project, you will need to fulfil all of the mandatory eligibility requirements, which include:
- the asset is at risk of loss without community intervention
- the type of asset is in scope of the Fund
- the project is sustainable and viable
- there is a realistic chance that the asset could be sold or transferred into community ownership within 12 months of being offered funding
- you can demonstrate you can "match" the capital grant from the Fund at the required match funding rate
- your organisation is an eligible organisation (voluntary and community organisations)
For the full list of eligibility requirements, and detail, visit the UK Government website.
The Community Ownership Fund grant cannot fund the costs of purchasing publicly owned assets where the public authority would credit a capital receipt. However, the Fund will work alongside existing Community Asset Transfers to support these transfers by funding the costs of renovation and refurbishment. For example, if an applicant was able to secure an asset transfer or raise the funds through another route, they could be eligible for funding from the Community Ownership Fund for any refurbishment needed in order to save that asset.
The purpose of the Fund is to provide support to voluntary and community groups who want to take ownership of assets.
The Community Ownership Fund grant received will only be used for renovation and refurbishment costs following the transfer of an asset into community ownership; the public authority will not credit a capital receipt from Community Ownership Fund funding.
The Fund will only invest in community assets which would otherwise be lost. There will therefore need to be evidence from both the current public owner and applicant about the current status of the asset and why its future is at risk.
Sustainability of the management of the asset should be evidenced in the application.
For full details, visit the UK Government website.
How long will the fund run for?
The Fund will run from July 2021 for 4 years until 2025.
How many times can applicants submit an EOI Form to the Fund?
The EOI stage of the application process is always open, meaning applicants can submit the form at the time that is right for their projects. There are no limits on how many times you can submit an EOI like there is for the main application stage, however if your project is ineligible you should not submit a new EOI unless the circumstances have changed and you now think your project will be eligible for the Fund.
Do I have to wait before submitting another EOI if I am unsuccessful?
There is no time limit on re-submitting an EOI after receiving an unsuccessful outcome from a previous EOI submission. Nonetheless, you should only submit another EOI if there has been a marked change in your projects circumstances that may deem it to be eligible.
Can I expect feedback on my EOI submission?
You can expect to receive feedback on the outcome of your EOI application within three weeks. Those applicants who are unsuccessful will receive feedback summarising where their application did not meet our eligibility requirements.
My asset is not at immediate risk of loss but could still do with support for refurbishments/improvements etc. Can I apply?
This Fund exists to prevent important assets being lost to the community. In order to meet the Community Ownership Fund eligibility requirements, applicants need to provide evidence that demonstrates that the asset is at risk of being lost to the community. The risk can be from closure, sale, neglect and dereliction under current ownership, or unsustainable operations under the current business model.