Cheshire East Council

Rural Business Grant Programmes

Rural Business Grant Programmes

The Rural Business Capital Grant Scheme is offering grants from £1,000 up to a maximum of £10,000 per eligible business for small scale investment in micro and small enterprises in rural areas. Examples of eligible items include, but are not limited to:


  • Creation, improvement and expansion of rural leisure, hospitality, and tourism businesses
  • Purchase of equipment for food processing
  • Modernising existing equipment for increased energy efficiency or increased productivity through automation
  • Funding for resilience infrastructure and nature-based solutions that protect local businesses.
  • Diversification projects outside of agriculture (for example, creating rural leisure and tourism facilities)


Eligibility criteria for the scheme

  • Only businesses and organisations trading from a property based in the Cheshire East Council rural classification can apply for a grant. (Guidance on how to use this tool are provided below).
  • Businesses must apply to the Council via an online application form to be considered for a grant payment
  • Only expenditure that occurs after the 1 April 2023 will be eligible
  • Businesses must hold a business bank account


Refer to the Rural UKSPF Capital Grant Programme scheme policy (PDF, 185KB) for full details of the Rural Business Capital Grant Scheme.

How to apply - Follow these steps:

Get Prepared


If you would like to have a chat with one of our support team to check your eligibility or to discuss your requirements, prior to starting an application, we may be contacted via the contact box below.


To support you with the preparation of your grant application, we have prepared  documents for you to download below.


  1. List of the key questions that you will need to answer on the online application site.
  2. How to use the rural mapping tool to determine if your property is in the rural classification area.

Review and finalise

Our team can support you with reviewing your proposal and advise you, prior to you submitting an application.


Contact our team to arrange a consultation or a site visit.


See below to contact us.


Submit formal application

All applications must be made via the official 'grant approval' site via the button below. This external site will open in a new window.


You may login with your existing details if you used the grant approval site in the past, or register for a new account to access the applications.


Once registered, you will be able to search for the scheme and submit your application.

Need help with your application?

If you have any questions about the grant scheme, need help with preparing your application, or to arrange a site visit, please contact the grant support team.