This is a grant competition for not-for-profit organisations and councils, funding projects to deliver water quality improvements, help connect people with the water environment and bring about behaviour change.
Applications for 2026-27 now open.
Closing date 23.59h on Wednesday 18th February 2026.
The awarding of any funding is subject to departmental budgets being approved. No letters of offer will be issued until the budget has been approved.
The key areas for funding under the Water Quality Improvement strand are:
Connecting people with the aquatic environment to achieve behavioural change
- Volunteering, including the establishment of new local groups or greater public involvement within existing groups, to improve the water environment e.g. adopt a “local water body”, host a river day.
- Community engagement and citizen science for aquatic/ marine conservation, protection and improvement e.g. Anglers’ Riverfly Monitoring Initiative, Invasive non-native species identification and training, outfall safari training, litter picking (can include purchase of specialist equipment).
- Engaging and empowering the community to support to increase understanding of the water environment or develop citizen science skills, such as species identification or water quality monitoring, water conservation and development of digital/social media and webinars that tie in with behavioural change and raise awareness of key issues.
- Local Pollution Prevention campaigns e.g. drainage misconnections, workshops, signage, leaflets.
Conservation, Protection and Restoration of our Aquatic environments:
- Creation, protection or restoration of aquatic, coastal or marine habitat.
- Creation of blue and associated green spaces.
- Recovery of threatened aquatic and marine species.
- Improving and maintaining fish passage.
- Tackling invasive non-native species e.g. removal and biosecurity planning.
- Preventing, removing or cleaning up pollution e.g. litter picking, wetlands, buffer zones, awareness raising.
- Water quality surveying and monitoring e.g. Anglers’ Riverfly Monitoring Initiative, baseline surveys and post project surveys.
- The development of restoration plans.
- Action that aids the improvement of water quality e.g. tackling diffuse pollution.
Nature-based solutions, particularly for climate change mitigation and adaptation
These projects should seek to work sustainably with the water environment to address socio-environmental issues, particularly in reference to climate change and flood risk management.
For example, projects may include, but are not limited to, action contributing to:
- Peatland and other wetland restoration to reduce pollution and flooding.
- Natural flood management e.g. silt trapping including woody debris to drains, swales, attenuation ponds, measures to prevent soil erosion and nutrient run off.
- Creating, enhancing or connecting blue and green infrastructure.
- River or waterways bank stabilization and in-stream improvements.
- Riparian management / tree planting, planting of native species/hedgerows, de-tunnelling, etc.