Forestry Commission: Tree Production Capital Grant
Overview
About the Tree Production Capital Grant
The Tree Production Capital Grant (TPCG) provides funding to help tree nurseries and seed suppliers invest in projects which improve, expand, automate or mechanise their operations. This will help improve not only the quantity but also the quality, diversity, and biosecurity of supply.
The TPCG is looking to support projects with outputs that will better equip nurseries to supply the trees required for new woodlands and urban planting projects. The grant forms part of the Government’s Nature for Climate Fund.
As well as enhancing the quantity of trees produced, we need to enhance the quality and diversity of trees produced. This will enable us to plant resilient treescapes that support biodiversity and are resilient to stresses such as climate change and pests and diseases. This means facilitating the supply of diverse planting material from a range of species and provenances. Stocking material should be of the highest possible quality to reduce planting losses and ensure the delivery of healthy trees thriving in the landscape.
The fund enables suppliers to bolster production at pace and has been designed to complement the Tree Production Innovation Fund, which provides support for research projects that will enhance UK tree production methods.
The grant is open to tree seed and sapling suppliers of all sizes, as well as new entrants looking to diversify into the sector.
What funding is available?
Up to £2.5 million of funding is available through the Tree Production Capital Grant, subject to sufficient high-quality bids being received.
The TPCG provides 50% funding for projects up to a maximum grant value of £175,000.
You should consider the source of your match funding before applying and explain this in your application. You may not source match funding from another Nature for Climate Fund (NCF) funded grant.
Example projects suitable for funding could include:
- investments in machinery such as transplanting systems and grading machines
- improved polytunnel infrastructure and irrigation systems
- biosecurity through improved water treatment and refrigeration equipment
- seed processing or storage equipment
You may submit no more than one bid during each funding round.
Funding is available for the 2024-2025 financial year only. All items must be received and work completed between 1 April 2024 and 27 March 2025. Before applying, please make sure you are confident that you can complete all activities and receive all items before this date. Any spend after this date will not be eligible to claim for.
Funding will be split into 2 streams:
- Stream A: projects valued between £10,000 and £100,000
- Stream B: projects valued at greater than £100,000
Projects must have a minimum total cost of £10,000 to be eligible.
Eligible costs that may be claimed for include:
- costs of equipment and machinery purchased
- delivery and shipping costs of items purchased
- personnel costs related to the construction or implementation of the items purchased at the applicant’s site of operation
Who Can Apply
To be eligible for funding, you must be UK-based and will need to demonstrate how the grant will be used to increase English tree seed or sapling supply.
Applicants to the TPCG could include:
- private sector nurseries and seed suppliers
- public sector organisations such as Local Authorities
- new entrants to forestry from horticulture or agriculture
- environmental NGOs
- community tree nurseries
The grant is open to forestry nurseries as well as those which produce amenity, fruit, or nut trees.
Forestry England and Forest Research are not eligible for funding under the TPCG.
Consortium applications
You are welcome to apply for the TPCG in partnership with other organisations. In your application you should identify which organisation will be lead organisation.
If your application is successful, the lead organisation will become the sole agreement holder and will be the sole recipient of grant funding upon receipt of valid claims. They will be responsible for the undertakings and obligations detailed in any grant agreement, in line with Terms and Conditions of funding. The contractual arrangements held between the lead organisation and their collaborators are not the responsibility of the Forestry Commission. The lead organisation will have sole responsibility for onward disbursal of grant funding to collaborators, for example.