Rural England Prosperity Fund
Capital projects for small businesses and community infrastructure
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) announced in March 2025 that the Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF) will receive £33 million in continuation funding. This funding is aimed at eligible local authorities throughout England, to enable them to invest in local businesses and community initiatives to foster local growth and address specific rural challenges.
The REPF provides capital funding to:
- support new and existing rural businesses to develop new products and facilities that will be of wider benefit to the local economy — this includes farm businesses looking to diversify income streams
- support new and improved community infrastructure, providing essential community services and assets for local people and businesses to benefit the local economy
Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils have received the following allocations from the REPF:
| Council | 23/24 | 24/25 | 25/26 |
| Babergh | £155,342.25 | £466,026.75 | £186,377.00 |
| Mid Suffolk | £205,414.50 | £616,243.50 | £246,455.00 |
Examples of the types of projects that the REPF has previously funded include:
- Development of new products, facilities or building conversions to help rural businesses diversify outside of agriculture.
- The creation of new footpaths and development of local visitor trails.
- Kitchens in community hubs and improvements to premises used by local volunteering groups.
- Installation of net zero infrastructure to make businesses and community organisations more energy efficient.
Further announcements will be made in the Spring as the new programmes and schemes are launched with the 2025/26 allocation. You can sign up to our Innovation Newsletter here to be notified when any new grant funding schemes launch.
