Rural Social Enterprise Investment Scheme pilot
The Rural Social Enterprise Investment Scheme is a pilot Scheme, funded by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs which will provide a grant to established Social Enterprises to increase their capacity, potential profitability and sustainability whilst supporting those who live in rural areas.
Grants of between £50,000 to £100,000 are available to Social Enterprises who meet the scheme qualifying criteria and are successful in a competitive process:
The Scheme will target established Rural Social Enterprises who have been trading for more than two years.
The project must be located in a rural area.
Definition of a Rural Area
For the purposes of this Scheme rural is defined as all those areas outside the statutory development limits of those towns with a population in excess of 5,000 inhabitants - Rural Definition Sheet.
Online Pre-application Workshops
Three online pre-application workshops have been arranged to provide detail on the scheme and the application process, weeks commencing 17th and 24th October 2022. It is recommended that anyone wishing to apply to the scheme should register to attend one of the webinars.
There are 2 stages to the application process
Stage 1 – Expression of Interest (EOI)
You must complete an online EOI application. We will use the information you provide on the EOI to determine if the organisation and proposed project are eligible.
Stage 2 – Full Application
Only applicants whose project has been deemed eligible will be invited to submit a full application.
Full information on who can apply, what is eligible, and how to apply is detailed in the Scheme Information document and EOI guidance document.
You can access a list of Frequently Asked Questions here.
If, after having read the information and guidance, you feel you are eligible to apply, then you should complete the online Expression of Interest form(external link opens in a new window / tab).
If you have any difficulty accessing any of the above links please contact us at ruralsocialeconomy@daera-ni.gov.uk.
