Supporting Local Projects
Small Grants Scheme
The Geopark provides two grant schemes to support the conservation and celebration of Charnwood Forest.
Our Managing the Landscape Grant Scheme supports projects that restore and protect the heritage and landscapes of Charnwood Forest.
Our Community Heritage Grant Scheme supports projects that celebrate the heritage of Charnwood Forest.
Discover more below.
Restoring and Protecting Our Heritage
Managing The Landscape Grant Scheme
If you have a project which supports the conservation, restoration, and management of Charnwood Forest’s rich geological heritage, habitats, built heritage and landscape features we’d love to hear from you.
We have a total of £90,000 available, with individual grants of between £1,000 and £10,000. The project must be delivered within the Charnwood Forest Geopark boundary. You can find a map of the Geopark here. A Landowner contribution of 10% matched funding is required, which can be all cash or a mixture of cash and in kind support.
For a project to be eligible for funding under the Managing the Landscape Grant Scheme, it must demonstrate clear public benefit for the landscape, natural or cultural heritage of Charnwood Forest Geopark. The kinds of projects we could fund include:
• Small-scale habitat creation and management (tree planting, meadows, heathland, orchards)
• Vegetation clearance around geological sites, natural or built heritage features
• Pest and disease control measures
• Creation of features for priority species (e.g. nesting boxes or otter holts)
• Management plans/surveys for locally designated wildlife sites, archaeological, or built heritage features
• Management or restoration of boundary features, e.g. hedgelaying, stone wall repairs
• New footpaths, bridle and cycle routes and multi-use trails to improve public access
• Clearing paths/ride management and installing waymarkers
• Accessibility improvements to enable a wider range of people to access nature reserves/geological or cultural heritage features
• Natural flood management
• Infrastructure development to enable forest enterprise e.g. community woodfuel
• Support to establish and train a new community or volunteer group to manage a publicly accessible wildlife site
This list is not exhaustive so if you have an idea for a project and are not sure whether it would qualify, do get in touch with us to discuss it.
Celebrating Charnwood Forest
Community Heritage Grant Scheme
If you have an idea for a project that will help people to explore, understand, care for or celebrate some aspect of Charnwood Forest’s natural or cultural heritage, we’d love to hear from you.
We have a total of £90,000 available, with individual grants between £500 and £5,000. Projects must be delivered within Charnwood Forest Geopark and/or further the objectives of the Charnwood Forest Landscape Partnership Scheme. You can find a map of the Geopark here. An applicant contribution of 10% match funding is required, which can be a mixture of cash, in kind, and volunteer time.
For a project to be eligible for funding under the Community Heritage Grant Scheme, it must demonstrate clear public benefit for the residents/visitors, landscape, natural or cultural heritage of Charnwood Forest Geopark. The kinds of projects we could fund include:
• Research which improves our understanding of the natural, social or cultural heritage of Charnwood Forest
• Creation of a display, event or trail to celebrate the history of your village or site
• Oral history project to record memories of Charnwood Forest’s communities
• Heritage interpretation in a local museum or site
• Community arts project linked to celebrating a Charnwood habitat, landscape feature or historical event
• Conservation or digitisation of archives
• Community digs or archaeological surveys
• Activities which improve access to or engagement with Charnwood Forest’s landscape and heritage for underserved groups
• Support towards the publication of trails, books, or films about an aspect of Charnwood Forest’s heritage
• Specialist skills development for local groups to help them discover and share their heritage more widely e.g. palaeography training, specialist artefact identification, developing professional heritage interpretation or trails, or surveying techniques.
Eligibility
The small grants schemes are open to organisations or groups from the public, private, voluntary and community sectors. Whilst applications from individuals are not precluded, there needs to be wider public benefit and it is expected that in most cases applications will be submitted on behalf of organisations or groups of people.
All projects must be completed by 30th September 2026.
Activities that we cannot fund include:
- Capital works beyond the Geopark boundary
- Projects which do not address the priorities of the Landscape Partnership Scheme
- Core-funding expenses such as staff wages, rents or existing maintenance costs
Ensuring A Strong Application
Applications will be scored on the basis of the quality of the proposal, the level of public benefit it would provide, value for money, and how well it addresses the core ambitions of the Landscape Partnership Scheme to help us to care for and celebrate Charnwood Forest.
Consideration of one or more of the following would add value to the project and increase its chance of success:
- Involves a partnership with at least one other individual, organisation, or business, aside from the lead applicant
- Actively involves members of the wider community beyond those immediately involved in running the project
- Promotes social inclusion and greater accessibility
You can discover more information about the Landscape Partnership Scheme, its aims, and projects, here.
How To Apply
Funding will be offered on a ‘first come, first served’ basis and we expect the fund to be competitive. We recommend applying for a grant as soon as you are ready to reduce the risk of funds having been spent and to give yourself the maximum time to deliver your project. Applications can be made at any time during the year, and you can expect to hear a response within 4 weeks of your application being submitted.
If you would like to apply to either of our Small Grant Schemes, please contact Julie Attard (jattard@nationalforest.org) with details of your project idea.
Our Landscape Partnership Scheme
Our Geopark is being developed as part of the Charnwood Forest Landscape Partnership Scheme – funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. To discover more about how we work, our projects, plans, and achievements, click the button below.
