GrantRadar

Test Valley Borough Council

Rural Business and Community Enterprise Fund

Grants of £1,000 to £10,000 for rural businesses and community organisations in Test Valley that provide commercial products or services — village pubs and shops, community halls launching a business hub or pantry, farms diversifying, rural sports and social clubs, and traditional rural trades. The grant meets up to 80% of project costs, so the applicant must find at least 20%, and it is paid retrospectively against invoices and receipts. The project must be in a rural area as defined by the Test Valley Corporate Plan, and a decision comes within four weeks.

Apply on the funder’s site
You could get
£1,000 – £10,000
no fixed round
Deadline
Rolling
apply any time
Effort
Heavy
budgets, references, often several stages

Who can apply

  • Any organisation with legal status: private sector companies, voluntary organisations, registered charities or local authorities
  • The project must be in a rural area as defined by the Test Valley Corporate Plan and shown on the council's supporting map
  • You must be constituted or trading at the time of application; hold any trading licences relevant to your enterprise, for example food business registration with Test Valley Borough Council for hospitality; have a UK bank account for your business or organisation; and have relevant and valid insurances in place such as public, employer and product liability insurance
  • You are expected to check that contractors have suitable insurance too
  • Grants are discretionary — being eligible gives no automatic entitlement

What it funds

Capital projects and one-off revenue costs such as training, where they add value to a rural enterprise by diversifying revenue streams, increasing productivity, or increasing capacity and resilience. The council's examples are:

  • A commercial or community rural pub or shop refurbishing or buying equipment
  • A community organisation running or starting a commercial venture such as a business hub, pantry or childcare facility
  • A commercial business creating something specifically for the local community, such as turning part of a building into community space
  • Rural social clubs refurbishing, buying equipment or training staff
  • A commercial sports club in a rural area
  • Farms diversifying
  • Traditional rural businesses such as foresters, farriers or thatchers investing or providing training

What it will not fund

  • On-going running costs such as staff wages
  • Applicants in arrears for business rates with Test Valley Borough Council
  • Applicants subject to any enforcement order for a breach of planning regulations
  • Domestic property improvements
  • The purchase of private vehicles
  • Enterprises located outside the eligible Test Valley rural area
  • Projects where capital assets would sit on land or property you do not own or lease
  • Projects for which necessary planning consent has not been secured at the time the work is done
  • Projects or costs where there is a statutory duty to provide them
  • Projects that could be fully funded using private finance
  • Organisations in serious financial difficulty or that have ceased trading
  • Businesses for whom the grant would breach the £315,000 Minimum Financial Assistance threshold over three fiscal years under the Subsidy Control Act 2022, counted across the whole company group
  • Projects which may be construed as radicalising or encouraging people into terrorism
  • Churches, for spaces used exclusively as places of worship — community spaces within them can be funded

if you are VAT registered you cannot claim the VAT element of any expenditure

How to apply

  1. Contact your Community Engagement Officer, found on the map on the council's page, so initial eligibility checks can be made and the right grant confirmed
  2. Read the guidance on planning requirements on the council's website if your project includes building works, and secure any consents independently
  3. Obtain quotations to match the value: one written quotation up to £10k, two for £10k-£30k, three above £30k
  4. Complete the online application form found on the council's website
  5. Email the completed application with all supporting documentation to the funds team

you will receive an acknowledgement, and will be contacted if there are outstanding queries

if successful you must sign and return the grant offer letter declaration within 20 working days or the offer is withdrawn

no expenditure before the date of the grant offer letter can be paid for

grants are paid retrospectively into your organisation's own bank account, never to contractors or suppliers; more than one claim can be made for a staged project

there are no rights of appeal and the council's decision is final

Have ready

  • Details of permissions or consents granted, where applicable
  • A recent statement from your organisation's bank account, dated within two months of the application and showing the account name and organisation's address
  • Your most recent full statutory audited or unaudited accounts, or if self-employed your most recent HMRC self-assessment return
  • Valid, detailed quotes or catalogue listings for the proposed expenditure, in the number set by its value
  • Proof of insurance for any contractor not registered on Companies House or without an electronic footprint
  • Proof of ownership or lease where work relates to improvements to a premises
  • Written confirmation from your landlord of permission to undertake the project, if relevant
  • A constitution, for community or charitable organisations
  • Evidence of relevant and valid insurances such as public, employer and product liability insurance

a quarterly progress report is required until the project is complete, and payment receipts are needed for the final monitoring report

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