What can we apply for?

You can apply for a revenue grant of up to £35k per Council to support the development of action plans for nature restoration in parks, plus up to £6k per Council to support quick-win actions.

This can include approaches to naturalise horticultural, grassland and wetland management in parks. The revenue funding can be used flexibly and could, for example, cover expert input from ecologist and landscape professionals, for surveys and plans, as well as for community engagement. The grant cannot be used for staffing costs unless this is new and/or additional to existing resources and will be used specifically to develop and deliver the proposed project.

The quick-win funding can also be deployed flexibly to support development and implementation of the action plan(s). This could include purchase and sowing/planting of wildflower seeds, plug plants and trees; equipment and machinery to support changing management practices (including shared equipment purchases between two or more Councils); signage, interpretation and other comms assets to support communication and engagement.

The case study provided by Dundee City Council illustrates the type of strategic approach that could be supported by this funding.

Activities supported by this grant could also inform future work by Councils on Nature Networks and projects that might be taken forward using Nature Restoration Funds, as well as supporting the outcomes of the recently published Scottish Biodiversity Strategy.