Grants Available for Rural Businesses

Ashford Borough Council has once again successfully secured funding from the UK
Government’s final round of Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF), as it seeks to further
support rural areas in the borough.

Ashford Borough Council has secured £122,000 REPF funding, specifically to support rural
businesses in the borough up to March 2026.

The money will go towards the following capital grant schemes:

• Rural Green Business Grant – to provide grants to support energy efficiency or
energy transition projects in commercial premises in rural parts of the borough.
• Rural Place and Provenance Grant – to provide grants to support rural food and drink
producers, hospitality and tourism attractions or venues, to increase productivity and
sustainability for businesses.

In addition, to support the creation of start-up spaces and
tackle the ‘Last Mile’ challenge in rural areas, seeking to create viable travel routes to increase visitors to rural destinations.

So far, the grant schemes have supported 46 businesses and are set to lead to approximately
51,000 kg of C02 saved across the borough each year. In addition, they are set to lead to the
creation of 50 jobs in rural areas of the borough.

The window for applications is now live until 11:59pm on 31st October 2025. For futther details see the Ashford Borough Council website.