Youth charities in England are being invited to apply for grants worth millions of pounds through a government funding scheme.
The Youth Investment Fund plans to distribute more than £300m in capital and revenue funding to charities, community groups and local councils over the next three years, according to a statement from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.
The fund, which opens today and will be focused in 45 of the poorest areas of the country, is intended to fund the building or renovation of 300 youth facilities.
Charities can apply at any time during the next three years and will initially be asked to show how soon capital projects could start.
The scheme will be managed by the Social Investment Business.
Additional spending on youth programmes was first promised earlier this year as part of the government’s levelling up strategy, when ministers committed to a National Youth Guarantee to help young people improve their health and skills.
Grants from the fund are expected to range between £300,000 and £8m, according to government documents about the scheme.
The SIB will distribute about £340m of the funding, while DCMS has already awarded £5m to four pilot projects, which are due to be completed this year and next year.
Nigel Huddleston, the minister for civil society and youth, said: “We are committed to ensuring that no young person is left out of reach or left behind, and have put it at the heart of our drive to level up this country.”
He encouraged charities to apply for what he called “life-changing funding”.
Nick Temple, chief executive of the SIB, said: “All young people deserve access to high-quality youth services and great youth facilities to thrive in life, but youth provision across the country is sadly unequal.
“That’s why we’re proud to be able to apply our 20-plus years’ knowledge and experience of grant programmes and capital projects to design, manage and deliver the Youth Investment Fund.
“Working alongside our partners National Youth Agency, Key Fund and Resonance, we’ll enable up to 300 youth facilities to be built or refurbished over the next three years. This is a wonderful opportunity to prioritise the needs of young people in England and create a more equal society for future generations.”
The first phase of the Youth Investment Fund was overseen by Comic Relief in the first months of 2022.
For more information and to apply, click here.