The green entrepreneurs fund, which is being run in collaboration with the University of Derby, is made up of 3 funding streams. All 3 schemes are now closed for applications.
Green entrepreneurs small grant fund
Grants of between £6,000 to £20,000 are available for proposals for alternative energy, clean fuel and carbon reduction projects.
To be eligible, projects must have a minimum spend of £15,000 and there is a maximum intervention rate of 40%. A total of £500,000 has been set aside for this fund.
Please note that there is limited funding remaining in this stream, and competition is high. Deadlines for applications is the end of June 2024.
This scheme is now closed to new applications.
Green entrepreneurs demonstrator grant fund
£1.2 million has been earmarked for a small number of high-quality, larger scale carbon-cutting projects in Derbyshire. This fund is open to larger scale projects that are designed to encourage solutions beyond the mainstream of current thinking.
The maximum grant available through this fund is £200,000.
This scheme is now closed to new applications.
Green entrepreneurs scholarship fund
This fund will support individuals to retrain with skills to enable them to enter the field of low carbon, green energy. Individuals can access up to £1,500 for training costs. £100,000 has been set aside for this fund.
The scholarship grants will allow individuals to study around their existing responsibilities. It will enable them to obtain the skills and qualifications they need to change their career or progress in employment. The study can take place either online or face to face or a combination of both.
This scheme is now closed to new applications.
Application requirements for small and demonstrator grant funds
Small to medium-sized businesses, micro-businesses not for profit organisations, charities and other organisations in Derbyshire (excluding Derby City) are welcome to apply.
Small to medium sized businesses are classed as having up to 250 staff and micro-business up to 10 staff.
All applicants will need to demonstrate that this funding support will help them achieve:
- measurable reductions in carbon emissions
- an increase in the scope, resilience and / or scale of their activity
- an improvement in organisational performance and demonstrate a positive impact towards low carbon, energy efficiency and/or alternative energy initiatives
Application requirements for the scholarships fund
To be eligible to apply for a grant under the scholarships fund applicants must:
- be an individual
- live in Derbyshire (outside of Derby City Council boundaries)
- study and gain skills / qualifications in low carbon technologies that contribute to a net-zero carbon economy
- be 19 years old or over
The grant will pay for training where there is no other support available to fund that learning. Applicants will be ineligible if when they apply, they are:
- attending further or higher education on a fulltime basis or
- in any government funded learning, where 100% of the cost is already paid
- an ineligible overseas national
About the programme
Funded through our COVID recovery fund, the green entrepreneurs fund programme has been set up in collaboration with the University of Derby as part of our COVID economic strategy and climate change commitments.
Grants are awarded by the green entrepreneurs fund programme board, which includes representatives from the county council and the University of Derby. Decisions will be based on the recommendations of assessing officers.