Town Centre Action Grants

We have focused funding allocated from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) on supporting programmes of activity to improve our town centres.

Grants of between £1,000 and £5,000 will be available to support stakeholders to develop plans and support activity that contributes to this.

We will focus the scheme on the principal town centres of Sittingbourne and Sheerness but will also support activity in the smaller historic centres of Queenborough and Milton Regis.

We are encouraging town centre stakeholders to come together to develop co-ordinated action plans and projects that come forward as part of such will be prioritised.

The scheme will also prioritise projects which include:

• local arts, cultural, heritage and creative events, and activities in and around the town centres that create interest and promote footfall and usage
• promotional campaigns to encourage visits and people to explore the town centres, increasing interest and footfall
• projects that enhance the existing cultural, historic and heritage offer, helping re-enforce a sense of place and encourage visitors

This is a discretionary grant scheme, and all decisions are based on our assessment of applications to determine if the required criteria are met.

This project is funded by the UK government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

The UK Shared Prosperity Fund is a central pillar of the UK government’s Levelling Up agenda and provides £2.6 billion of funding for local investment by March 2025. The Fund aims to improve pride in place and increase life chances across the UK investing in communities and place, supporting local business, and people and skills.

If you would like further advice on this scheme and how it will be applied, please contact the Economic Development and External Funding Team at prosperityfund@swale.gov.uk

Who can apply

This Grant scheme is open to stakeholders in town centres, including commercial, not-for-profit, and public sector organisations. Proposals linked to co-ordinated town-based action plans will be prioritised.

We will not consider applications from individual businesses, unless the project is linked to a stakeholder led action plan and/or has a wider community focus.

How to apply

Please make sure that you read the guidance notes (PDF 3.53MB) for the grant scheme before you apply, to understand the full criteria for the scheme.

You can apply by completing the Town Centre Action Grants application form (PDF 357KB), and then email the form to prosperityfund@swale.gov.uk.

We must receive applications no later than Monday 27 November, 2023. If the grant scheme becomes oversubscribed, we may close the grant scheme early to new applications.