Capital Grants Programme 2026 to 2027

This grant is for capital expenditure. Capital expenditure essentially relates to the purchase, enhancement and/or improvement of significant fixed assets including land, buildings and equipment which will be of use or benefit in providing services for more than one financial year.

Fixed asset refers to long-term, tangible physical resources, owned by a business to generate income, lasting longer than one year. This could include land, property, machinery, vehicles, furniture and certain type of other equipment, just to mention a few.  

For improvement work on buildings or land to be eligible, the work undertaken must lead to at least one of the following outcomes:

1. Lengthen the useful life of the asset – beyond the current assessment of its useful life.
2. Increase the market value of the asset – if the asset were valued after the works substantially higher than prior to the works.
3. Increase the extent to which the asset can or will be used.

There are also specific rules around equipment as capital investment, where the total value of the equipment must exceed £2,000, the equipment will have to have a useful life of over 1 year and consist of tangible assets. For example, one chair worth £300 would not be eligible, but purchasing a lot of chairs over the value of £2,000 would qualify.

It can sometimes be difficult to determine if expenditure is capital or revenue. You can apply for any combination of purchase or improvement of capital assets/equipment, where the conditions above are met. Below are some examples of eligible capital activity.

• improvements to buildings or creative spaces that enhance sustainability, accessibility, or operational functionality
• purchase or installation of specialist equipment essential for cultural production, participation, or organisational growth (minimum of £2,000)
• digital infrastructure upgrades (e.g. ticketing systems, content production equipment, IT hardware) that strengthen financial resilience or audience engagement
• small scale capital works including upgrades to environmental performance (e.g. insulation, lighting, energy efficient systems) where this leads to reduced carbon impact and long-term savings
• whilst repairs, like-for-like replacements or remedial works are normally considered revenue expenditure, we have a special permission from WMCA to allow these types of works to take place as part of grant delivery.
• purchase of buildings or land, where this will meet the overall aims of the grant

Note that for any building-based works, you must either own the asset or have a lease arrangement for a minimum of 2 years from the point of application. We cannot support any costs relating to planning permissions and you are responsible for ensuring that any works comply with the local planning regulations and you have all the required permissions in place.

Applicants may apply for multiple capital items within one application. Your application must include a clear breakdown of intended expenditure with evidenced costs, quotations, or well researched estimates. You will need to clearly explain:

• why this capital investment is essential for your organisation
• how it will address a defined need
• how it will contribute to the sustainable enhancement of your creative space

We recognise that every organisation operates within different contexts, and we therefore do not want to be overly prescriptive about how the grant should be used.

*Please note that you can only submit one application and/or apply for one project*

However, due to the limited funds available, we must ensure that awards have a meaningful, tangible impact and are directed towards organisations and communities with the greatest need.

Assessment will take into account levels of local cultural investment and infrastructure gaps, using evidence from the Coventry Cultural Place Profiler, Cultural Infrastructure Mapping, Joint Cultural Needs Assessment and objectives of The plan for Culture in Coventry: January 2026 to December 2027.

What we won't fund

• Any capital investment in buildings or spaces where ownership or lease/tenancy agreement (minimum two years) cannot be demonstrated

• any capital investment in buildings or spaces where you do not have the permission of the owner to undertake these works and/or don’t have the required permissions in place

• purchases or activity that has already taken place, or for which contracts are already signed/purchase orders issued. We cannot fund any retrospective costs.
• purchase or installation of specialist equipment totalling less than £2,000
• operational costs such as rents, utilities, routine maintenance and wages
• payments for work or activities which the grant recipient has a statutory duty to undertake or that are fully funded by other sources
• any revenue costs, including feasibility studies, delivery of creative activities, advertising, communications, consultancy, auditor fees, accountancy or marketing
• using the grant to further invest, for example in stocks or shares, or towards interest payments or service charge payments for finance leases
• lobbying, entertaining, expenses or activities aimed at influencing legislative or regulatory action
• statutory fines, criminal fines or penalties
• VAT reclaimable by the Grant Recipient from HMRC
• payments for activities of a political or exclusively religious nature
• bad debts, depreciation, amortisation or impairment of assets
• duplicate funding

For any questions about eligible expenditure, please email artsdevelopment@coventry.gov.uk