UK Government Levelling Up Fund Round 2

The UK Government recently announced the second round of the  Levelling Up Fund, which focuses on capital investment in local infrastructure and published a refreshed prospectus, inviting bids from all eligible organisations from Northern Ireland and across the UK. 

The updated prospectus, technical note, and application guidance for the fund can all be viewed here

A few weeks ago the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), who are administrating this fund, hosted an informational webinar aimed at applicants in Northern Ireland to promote the second round of the Fund and provide an overview of the application process.The webinar covered  investment priorities, timelines and the assessment process for applications.

A recording of this  webinar can now be viewed here, and the accompanying slides can be viewed here.

The department has also published an FAQ document regarding the Fund , which can be viewed here. The Levelling Up team state  they have received a high volume of queries about the fund to date , and the FAQ document will be updated regularly to reflect this - we shall  publish copies of these on the NICVA website, as soon as they are made available. 

For more information on the fund you read our previous article announcing the opening of Round 2 of the Fund here

You can also view more information on  the Departments website here

Further Information 

Who can apply to the Levelling Up Fund in Northern Ireland?

In Northern Ireland the UK government will accept bids , from a range of local applicants, including but not limited to: businesses, voluntary and community sector organisations, district councils, the Northern Ireland Executive (for transport projects only) and other public sector bodies. 

When can organisations apply to the Levelling Up Fund? 

The fund will open for  applications from the 31st May 2022 and eligible applications must submit their full bids, with all supporting documentation via the online portal, by 12 noon on 6th July 2022. 

The Department indicate that assessment of applications will take place over the Summer period 2022 , with successful Funding announcements made in Autumn 2022. 

The Department are encouraging Northern Ireland organisations to start as soon as soon as possible in considering what their application will look like.

The Levelling Up Fund prospectus and technical note can be viewed here, and supporting application guidance can be viewed here. 

For examples of previous successful projects, you can access the Northern Ireland Levelling Up Map .

The Department indicate that a series of teach-in videos, to support applications,  will be also be made available in early May covering themes such as; Procurement, Business Case Development and Monitoring & Evaluation via their website. We will signpost organisations to these resources as soon as they are made available.

For specific questions or queries on the Fund you can e-mail the Department directly via [email protected] . The deadline for applicants to submit questions to the team regarding is the 15th June 2022.