Galloper Wind Farm Fund:
Funding Criteria & Guidance for Applicants 2026-27
- Important dates
- How the fund works
- How much can you apply for?
- Who can apply & geographic eligibility
- What the GWFF Funds
- What makes a strong project
- Galloper Wind Farm Fund Objectives
- Essential Criteria and Fund Priorities
- Desirable Criteria
- Project budget
- Panel Process
- Project delivery and publicity
- Monitoring
- Payment of grant
- Links
- How to apply
If you need the information on this web page in a different format, please contact us by email at [email protected] or phone Oka Last, National Landscape Grants Officer on 01473 265558.
1 Important dates
- Closing date for applications to be received: 9th June 2026
- Project delivery and completion: July 2026 to 10th March 2027
2 How the fund works
The National Landscape Grants Officer is available to give support and advice before applying through to project completion. Contact: Oka Last [email protected]. Tel: 01394 445225
Once your application is received, we will acknowledge receipt by e mail within 5 working days and let you know when the Panel will meet to consider your application. We may get in touch to ask for further supporting information.
After the Panel Meeting we will let you know the outcome of your application. If your application is successful a formal grant offer letter and funding agreement will be sent to confirm any grant award and conditions.
Grant payment is usually made in arrears, upon completion of the project, but a 50% up front interim payment may be requested when returning the agreement.
3 How much can you apply for?
There is formally no limit on the amount to be applied for per application. The panel usually award up to £3,000 per project although in exceptional circumstances higher awards may be made.
Grants are awarded for up to 100% of financial costs of the project. Up to 20% of the project value may be grant support of overhead costs e.g. staff and office costs. See
Project Budget Section 10 for more.
In kind contributions - All applicants are encouraged to present within their budget their own contributions to the project delivery, for example, an estimate of in kind volunteer time that will be spent on delivering the project. This helps the grant panel to consider how your project will bring added value to Fund area and National Landscape communities. See Project Budget Section 10 for more.
4 Who can apply and geographic eligibility
The Fund is open to organisations and groups from the public, private or voluntary sectors. Whilst applications from individuals are not precluded, there needs to be wider public benefit and it is expected that in most cases applications will be submitted on behalf of organisations, groups of people or partnerships.
The Government commissioned Landscapes Review of National Landscapes and National Parks (2019) identified the need to engage with a broader range of society in delivering National Landscape purpose. The National Landscapes are committed to equality of opportunities to access the Galloper Wind Farm Fund and seek to attract applications from the widest range of society possible.
Geographic Eligibility
The geographical area for the GWFF is defined primarily by a 5km radius from Sizewell or up to the high-water mark. See map of the GWFF geographic area: GWFF fund area map.
The GWFF panel may under certain circumstances choose to support eligible projects that operate more widely, that by their very nature necessitate a broader view. Any such project would still need to demonstrate conservation and amenity benefit for the specified geographic area according to the fund objectives. A grant award may be made to a project located outside of the GWFF area where benefit is seen to be achieved for/within the GWFF area, for example (but not limited to) projects that benefit transient wildlife or enhance landscape views from the GWFF area.
5 What the Galloper Wind Farm Fund funds
The Fund supports a wide range of costs, essentially, everything that is needed to complete (or develop) a project, that falls within the criteria of the grant, may be funded. The following list is not all encompassing but gives examples of what costs the GWFF may support: capital works, practical conservation work, public access and infrastructure improvements, activities, training, equipment, materials, technology, information and interpretation, native planting, publicity, contract work or professional services.
6 What makes a strong project?
Please see the Suffolk and Essex Coast & Heaths National Landscape website for summaries of past funded projects and to read case studies. Successful applications clearly demonstrate benefits to the GWFF fund area and strongly meet the Criteria of the Fund. Recommended reading about the vision of National Landscapes may be found in Links Section 15.
7 Fund Objectives
The GWFF objectives are primarily those of the Suffolk & Essex Coast & Heaths National Landscape. Projects must demonstrate that they will deliver specific actions or objectives identified within the current, and subsequent, National Landscape Management Plan for the area, and by fulfilling community, conservation and access objectives. Please see Links Section 15.
8 Essential Criteria
and Fund Priorities
The GWFF Panel is particularly keen to encourage projects that are pertinent to its key priorities. Preference will therefore be given to projects that cover one or all of the following:
- Conservation of landscape character and enhance the distinctive nature of the GWFF area
- Conservation of biodiversity and lessen fragmentation of habitats
- Conservation of the historic resources of the area including landscapes and the built environment
- Conservation of the geodiversity of the area
- Provision and enhance of access and recreation provision
- Provision of interpretation that improves understanding, guides behaviour and helps people enjoy the National Landscape
It will also be useful for applicants to consider how their project meets sustainable development objectives within the National Landscape and the GWFF area i.e. how the project contributes to environmental, social and economic sustainability. The below table shows ways in which a funded project may meet the sustainability objectives.
Essential Criteria – Sustainability
1 Environmental sustainability
Will your project?:
- Conserve and enhance nature and biodiversity
- Enhance character of distinctive landscapes
- Sustain natural resources and geodiversity of the landscape
- Conserve and enhance historic resources e.g. landscape, archaeology, built or cultural heritage
- Support climate sustainability e.g. carbon reduction and sustainable practice such as using local, sustainably sourced materials
- Encourage sustainable travel and minimise adverse transport impacts
2 Social sustainability
Will your project?:
- Develop community infrastructure
- Provide training or build community capacity to deal with challenges such as health and wellbeing or water resilience
- Provide new or improved local services
- Allow access for a wide spectrum of society and improve access for underrepresented groups of people.
- Have support or involvement of local communities e.g. volunteers
- Improve understanding, guide behaviour and help people enjoy the National Landscape
- Retain the tranquillity of the area
3 Economic sustainability
Will your project?:
- Allow sustainable public access and recreation
- Help the local economy such as supporting local businesses
- Provide skills for the future e.g. volunteering/training
- Generate its own income
- Attract other contributions e.g. funding partners
- Generate new or safeguard existing employment
Whilst the project does not have to bring equal benefit to all strands, there should be an element of help for each aspect, or certainly no adverse impact. Sustainable development is about the wise use of resources and avoids the development of one strand to the detriment of the others.
Galloper Wind Farm Fund – project examples that meet the objectives:
- Projects that improve the environment, natural character and/or sense of place of the National Landscape and the GWFF area
- Projects that improve the visual appearance of the area and thereby increase the enjoyment and experience of the National Landscape and the GWFF area for residents and visitors.
- Projects that conserve and enhance the area’s natural beauty (the principal statutory purpose of the National Landscape’s designation).
- Projects that improve sustainable access to the area, particularly within 5km of the substation development.
- Projects may also include those that improve peoples’ intellectual access to the area, for example through the production of interpretation materials.
9 Desirable Criteria
A key aim of the scheme is to mitigate the impact of the Galloper substation and thereby to support communities in ways that enhance understanding of conservation and accessibility of the area, while promoting co-operation and social inclusion. Preference will therefore be given to projects that cover some or all of the following:
- Provide interpretation that improves understanding, guides behaviour and helps people enjoy the National Landscape
- Demonstrate innovation or best practice
- Promote or help to implement social inclusion
- Actively involve members of the community
- Provide benefit to the public and wellbeing
- Involve or encourage partnership working
- Involve young people and/or other groups underrepresented in the National Landscape
- Have little or no access to alternative funding sources
- Lever in contributions from other sources e.g. funding partners
- Complement key local and national strategies
- Provide potential PR for project and the National Landscape
Criteria lists in Sections 8 & 9 are not exhaustive and other activities may be eligible to receive a grant.
10 Project Budget
Applicants must complete a separate Budget Form - an Excel template is provided with the application documents.
For help with this, please do get in touch with the National Landscape Grants Officer with any questions or if you need an alternative formal of Budget Form.
What the applicant contributes
Grants are awarded for up to 100% of financial costs of the project. Up to 20% of the project value may be grant support of overhead costs e.g. staff and office costs.
Overhead costs - Panels usually expect to fund project activity. Panels recognise that projects need resources to deliver them. Panels anticipate mainly seeing overhead costs being presented as in kind contributions from the applicant. In some circumstances, for example where staff are brought in to deliver a particular project the Panel will consider supporting overheads at a higher level than 20%.
In kind contributions - All applicants are encouraged to present within their budget their own contributions to the project delivery, for example, an estimate of in kind volunteer time that will be spent on delivering the project. Other examples of in kind contributions are staff time and loan of equipment, premises or land. Including this information helps the grant panel to consider how your project will bring added value to GWFF area communities.
The Applicant should work out in kind contributions to project delivery as follows:
- For unpaid volunteer time - use the below table values.
- For in kind staff time (paid) - use the actual financial value.
VAT
If the grant payment is being made to a non VAT registered organisation/body/individual the VAT costs can be met by the GWFF. If the grant payment is being made to a VAT registered organisation the GWFF cannot meet any VAT costs (i.e. use budget figures excluding VAT).
11 Panel Process
Pre-panel assessment
Applications will be initially assessed by the GWFF Advisors. They will look at the fund criteria and judge how well the project meets those aspirations. Applicants may in some instances be asked to provide further information to allow a decision to be taken. It is the responsibility of the applicants, not the National Landscape Team, to ensure that they have supplied all the required information.
Panel assessment
Applications will be assessed by the GWFF Panel. They will look at the Fund objectives and criteria to judge how well the proposed project meets those aspirations. The Panel will favour projects that really grasp the concept of conservation and accessibility, and have demonstrated how they are trying to meet the criteria and priorities of the National Landscape. The Panel may advise that an offer is made for less than the full amount requested. They may also give guidance to the National Landscape Advisor to discuss certain aspects of the project with the applicant to clarify details before they give their final advice.
12 Project delivery
and Publicity
Project Delivery
Projects must wait to begin publicity and delivery of the project until the formal grant offer letter has been received, outlining conditions of the grant award, and the signed funding agreement has been returned.
Applicants are responsible for management and delivery of all elements of the project, including payment of project costs and safety. All necessary permissions and
procedures for the safe delivery of the project must be in place. Your delivery must not conflict with any Government or other statutory body advice.
Grants must be used solely for the purposes specified in the application. Any proposed changes from your original application must be agreed in writing.
Unless otherwise agreed in writing all projects must be completed by the following March (i.e. grants must be completed by the end of the financial year).
Acknowledgement and Publicity
Projects must comply with the Publicity Guidance for Grant Funded Projects. This document provides guidance on:
- Conditions and expectations of the Galloper Wind Farm Fund
- Acknowledgement of your grant award
- Mandatory use of GWFF logo
- Proof-reading by the National Landscape Team of project materials/publicity before release
- Use of digital platforms
- Planning and delivery of project communications
- Support available to your project from the National Landscape Team
The National Landscape and GWFF Panel reserve the right to use any material submitted for publicity purposes.
13 Monitoring
Mid-year update
We will ask for a very short mid-term update to keep the National Landscape Grants Officer in touch with the progress of your project and offer support as needed.
Final grant claim
When the project is completed it is mandatory that your final claim is received (by the National Landscape) by the deadline stated in the grant offer letter. This deadline is usually around early to mid March. This is essential for the National Landscape to meet it’s end of financial year deadlines and to feedback to the GWFF Panel and funders. The National Landscape is unable to guarantee payment of the grant if the final claim is received later than the given deadline.
For the final claim, the National Landscape must receive project papers as follows:
- End of Grant Monitoring Form
- A Bank Details Form, or Invoice to the National Landscape for the grant payment
- A short final report of approximately one page of text including general information about the project e.g. evaluation of achievements, numbers of events held, people and partners engaged, any challenges faced and evidence to support your final claim such as:
- evidence of expenditure e.g. receipts/invoices
- final budget summary
- evidence of grant acknowledgement/project publicity
- at least two electronic photos of the project that the GWFF Panel and the National Landscape has permission to use in its own promotions
When projects don’t go to plan…
If there are any concerns about fulfilling the conditions of the GWFF grant award, the National Landscape encourages project leaders to open discussions early with the Grants Officer. The National Landscape wishes all projects to succeed and will approach negotiations with the aim of reaching a mutually satisfactory conclusion that delivers benefits to the GWFF area communities.
The National Landscape will safeguard the wise and legitimate use of the Fund through monitoring the progress of projects. This may also include site inspections or requiring further evidence of project delivery.
14 Payment of Grant
Grant payment is usually made in arrears, on completion of the project and final claim, but a 50% up front interim payment may be requested when returning the funding agreement. Advanced grant payment may be authorised to help with cash flow for smaller organisations and is unlikely to be for more than 50% of the grant offer.
Payment is requested by completion of the final grant claim, including a Bank Details Form or other payment options are available. Applicants need to have a bank account for grant payment to be made into. If this is not possible, the applicant may request (on the Application Form) to nominate a partner organisation to provide a bank account for project finance purposes.
The National Landscape is unable to guarantee payment of the grant if the grant agreement is not adhered to e.g. we may not be able to pay the grant if the final claim is submitted late or incomplete.
The National Landscape reserves the right to withhold or recover payment of all or part of any grant if the aims and objectives of the project are not fully met or if funds remain unspent.
15 Links
For more about applying to the SDF and other National Landscape grant giving programmes
www.dedhamvale-nl.org.uk or www.coastandheaths-nl.org.uk
Suffolk & Essex Coast & Heaths National Landscape Management Plan
https://coastandheaths-nl.org.uk/managing/management-plan/
Dedham Vale National Landscape & Stour Valley Management Plan
www.dedhamvale-nl.org.uk/managing/management-plan/
National Landscapes Association Colchester Declaration
https://coastandheaths-nl.org.uk/managing/nature-recovery/
The Landscapes Review of Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs) and National Parks (the Glover Review)
www.coastandheaths-nl.org.uk/managing/reference-library/landscapes-review/
16 How to Apply
A completed Application Form and Budget Form (preferably typed) should be received by the National Landscape by 9th June 2026.
Email: [email protected]
Tel: 01394 445225
National Landscape Grants Officer
Galloper Wind Farm Fund
National Landscape Office
Saxon House
1 Whittle Road
Hadleigh Road Industrial Estate
Ipswich
IP2 0UF