Rural organisations across the Highlands are being invited to apply for a funding programme worth more than £1 million, aimed at improving community assets and addressing inequalities affecting children, young people and families.
The scheme, delivered through the Highland Local Action Group, will offer grants of up to £25,000 for projects across much of the region, with applications opening in stages from mid-April and initial decisions expected by early summer.
The funding is structured around two priorities: upgrading community facilities and supporting initiatives that respond to social and economic inequalities. It forms part of a wider approach intended to place more control over local investment in the hands of community-led partnerships.
Smaller grants of up to £10,000 will be available through a simplified application process and allocated on a rolling basis until funds are exhausted. Larger awards, capped at £25,000, will require a two-stage process beginning with expressions of interest opening on 13 April, followed by full applications and final decisions expected by the end of June.
Projects supported under the scheme must be ready to begin by 1 July 2026, or earlier in the case of smaller grants, and must be completed by the end of February 2027. Applicants will also need to provide detailed costings supported by quotes, indicating a focus on projects that are already well developed.
The programme is open to most rural areas across the Highland Council region, though organisations based within Inverness are excluded from this round, reflecting the scheme’s rural focus. Badenoch and Strathspey are also excluded, as funding there is administered separately through the Cairngorm Trust.
While the overall allocation exceeds £1 million, the relatively modest size of individual grants suggests the programme is designed to support a broad range of smaller projects rather than a limited number of large-scale interventions. This may allow more communities to benefit, though it also implies that funding is unlikely to address more structural challenges on its own.
The emphasis on tackling inequality among children and families points to ongoing concerns about access to services and opportunities in rural areas, where distance, transport and population change can create additional pressures. However, the scheme leaves considerable scope for applicants to define the nature of the issues they seek to address, with no specific targets or measures outlined at this stage.
Similarly, while improving community assets can include anything from local facilities to shared spaces, the programme does not specify how priorities will be balanced between competing applications or how impact will be assessed once projects are completed.
The timetable for applications is relatively tight, particularly for larger projects, with just under two weeks available to submit initial expressions of interest. This may favour organisations that already have plans in place and the capacity to respond quickly, while newer or smaller groups may find the process more demanding.
Full guidance and eligibility criteria are expected to be published by 13 April on the Highland Council website, which will provide further detail on how applications will be assessed and how funding decisions will be made.
For communities with ready-to-deliver projects, the scheme offers an opportunity to secure funding within a relatively short timeframe. The extent to which it can contribute to longer-term improvements in rural infrastructure and inequality will depend on how projects are selected and what outcomes they achieve over the coming year.
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