UK Shared Prosperity Fund Grants

UKSPF – Digital Connectivity for Community Facilities: Introduction

The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority’s (LCRCA’s) local investment plan for the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) programme – the UK’s successor to EU Structural funds – includes a grants programme focussed on Digital Connectivity for Community Facilities.  VOLA has been appointed by the LCRCA to manage this programme.

The first 2 rounds of the fund awarded nearly £600,000 to 84 grass-roots, not-for-profit community organisations across the Liverpool City Region. 

Round 3 – NOW CLOSED! Round 4 coming in 2024

Grants of between £2,500 and £10,000 are available.  Please do not apply for more than the maximum, or less than the minimum.

The application documents from Round 3 can be downloaded below (the application process may differ slightly in Round 4):   

This is a competitive process, with awards made on merit to VCFSE organisations based in all six boroughs of the city region – Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral.

Please email completed applications along with a copy of your organisations most recent accounts and annual report to ukspfgrants@volamerseyside.org.uk

Briefing sessions

  1. General info briefing session:

VOLA ran some online briefing session for local VCFSE sector organisations, the slides and a recording from one of the sessions is available below:

  1. Technical hints and tips briefing session:

We held a briefing on Monday 20th November focusing on technical considerations when developing-public access computer facilities, with helpful hints and tips on what you need to do, things need to purchase, etc. The slides and a recording of the session are available below:

Further background information to help determine if the grant fund is, or could be of relevance to your organisation:

Funded through the Government’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), through the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority as the local Lead Authority, the fund supports the creation of new, and improvement of existing community facilities where people can go to access computers and get online.

Organisation eligibility: The Digital Connectivity for Community Facilities grants programme is open to grass roots, not-for-profit, Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise (VCFSE) sector organisations with an operational (public access) base in the Liverpool City Region and with an annual turnover not exceeding £1.5 million.

The overall purpose of the grants programme is to support VCFSE organisations to improve their public-facing IT facilities (i.e. computer drop-in facilities), and to create new facilities in areas of need, where there may currently be no, or limited provision.

The aim of the grants programme is to provide funding and support to:

  1. Target neighbourhoods where there is currently a lack of community-based digital facilities to help local, VCFSE organisations to set up new computer drop-in facilities;
  2. Upgrade outdated and poor quality digital kit and/or improve broadband connectivity in community facilities, where current equipment &/or connections can be evidenced as being poor; and
  3. Increase capacity, by providing funding to purchase more digital devices, where current facilities are insufficient to meet demand.

Please note: the fund is not about improving organisations’ general IT infrastructure (i.e. it is not for kitting your staff/ volunteers out with new computers), and grants cannot be used to fund technical equipment that is purely aimed at recreational activities, or the direct delivery of digital skills training, other activities, or organisational overheads.  It is purely aimed at funding the ‘kit and connectivity’.

As well as the upcoming round, opening in November 2023, two further funding rounds will take place during 2024.  Further details will be provided in due course.