£50,000 Nature Recovery Fund launched to protect wildlife and habitats
A new Nature Recovery Fund has been launched to help protect and restore local wildlife and habitats across Westmorland and Furness.
A total of £50,000 is now available from Westmorland and Furness Council for projects that aid in the recovery of one or more priority species or control/eradicate key invasive non-native species listed in the recently published Cumbria Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS), or that support pollinators across the area.
Organisations and partnerships can apply for grants of between £5,000 and £20,000, which can be used to partially or fully support projects that make a measurable difference to nature recovery efforts within Westmorland and Furness.
Activities could include habit enhancement, restoration and/or creation works; purchase and installation of infrastructure such as swift boxes, bat boxes and trail cameras; baseline surveys; purchase of equipment to directly support the removal of INNS such as that used for direct removal/eradication; reintroduction of pollinators or priority species to their former habitats, supporting existing populations, or helping species adapt to environmental changes; and research and development.
Applications are now open until Friday 30 January 2026 and can be completed online. Eligible organisations and groups are encouraged to apply for funding to help drive forward species recovery across the area.
Making Tax Digital Government Guides
Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax is coming in from April 2026 for those with a turnover above £50k and from Monday 27th April for those over £30k. Now’s the time to get ready and informed.
See the below guides from HMRC which may be useful:
Funding support for T Level
Did you know? SMEs can claim funding to cover costs of hosting T Level industry placements – including staff time.
The Employer Support Fund is available until Tuesday 31 March 2026 for placements in all sectors, including Health and Construction routes. It can cover equipment and staff time for set-up, supervision and mentoring.
Invoices can now be used as evidence for staff time claims (max £35/hour) and student numbers, hours, rate, total amount and reason should be included.
You can find out more about the funding here
Government Urges Small Businesses To Boost Cyber Resilience
The UK government has warned that cyber threats to small businesses are rising, with half of firms reporting an attack in the past year.
To help organisations strengthen their defences, the government has created two free resources:
Read the full ministerial letter to understand the risks and access the recommended tools to improve your business’s cyber security.
Consultation on business support for co-operatives
The Department for Business has launched a consultation on how the Government can continue to support co-operative and non-financial mutual businesses to start up and grow. The consultation will cover the start-up process, how co-operatives and non-financial mutuals grow, and experiences of co-operatives and non-financial mutuals in accessing business support.
Read more about the consultation here
Local authorities can save contracts for local businesses
The Government has announced that small businesses across England are set to benefit from £1 billion of funds every year through reforms allowing local authorities to reserve some contracts for suppliers in their area. Local authorities, along with fire and police authorities, will now be able to reserve competitions for their lower-value contracts to UK-based suppliers and suppliers in a defined local area.
Read more about the reforms here
Consultation on business rates and investment
HM Treasury has launched a consultation on reforms to the business rates system. The consultation will examine how the business rates system influences business investment decisions and how reforms could help better support investment and economic growth.
Read more about the consultation here
Team Barrow launches £400,000 grant scheme to help local people back into work
Team Barrow has launched a £400,000 grant scheme designed to help those who want to overcome health challenges which prevent them from working, or which limit how much work they are able to do.
The Barrow Rising: Work and Health Fund (Adult Support), which is being led by Westmorland & Furness Council, is open to charitable organisations – including social enterprises – that support people who are disabled or have long-term health conditions, those with caring responsibilities, or others experiencing disadvantage. Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise Sector organisations who are working on projects with local employers, committed to inclusive workplaces, are encouraged to apply.
The initiative aims to build strong community connections and create meaningful pathways into work, with priority given to projects that bring fresh, community-led ideas to life.
There are two funding levels for the scheme, which is being managed by the Cumbria Community Foundation, on behalf of Team Barrow. These are:
All projects must run for 12 months from the date the grant is awarded and meet certain reporting and delivery standards set out in the Barrow Rising Work and Health Fund (Adult Support) Service Scope Document. More information on the criteria can be found here
Applications close on 12th January 2026, shortlisted organisations will be invited to present to a panel from Team Barrow week commencing 2nd March 2026 with funding decisions announced by 31st March 2026 with a project start date of 1st April 2026.
Any queries before applying should be directed to Sarah Thompson at Cumbria Community Foundation via grants@cumbriafoundation.org
Call out for tourism businesses to register on our new destination websites
Discover Carlisle and the Western Lake District & Coast now have brand new promotional websites to showcase our area to visitors. Businesses can register free of charge by filling out the forms below.
Events can also be listed which will help us generate content for our social media channels and promote your activity.
This opportunity is open to all businesses operating in the visitor economy in Cumberland.
The new websites were funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and will be the backbone to all of our future destination marketing activity.
List your business on Discover Carlisle
List your business on Western Lake District & Coast
Increase in women starting up
A new report from Prowess: Women in Business has revealed that women's start-up activity has reached its highest level in a decade. Later-life enterprise is increasing, with women over 50 becoming one of the fastest-growing entrepreneurial groups. However, women still have limited access to investment and follow-on capital and the Minimum Income Floor continues to limit earnings stability for self-employed women who claim Universal Credit.
Read more about the report here
Fall in number of construction contractors
The number of self-employed contractors in the construction industry has fallen by around 20% since 2019. Industry leaders have warned that the fall in self-employed contractors will have an impact on the industry's flexibility. The fall has been attributed to the effects of Brexit and the pandemic, along with more contractors retiring.
Read more about the fall here
Funding directory for farmers
Strutt & Parker has launched an online directory to help farmers and landowners find and understand green funding schemes. Many farmers believe that the constant closure and reshaping of schemes have made it difficult to see what support still exists. The directory includes schemes run by Defra, the Forestry Commission, water companies and charities.
Read more about the directory here
Success for the Carlisle Business Improvement District (BID)
Following a ballot which closed on Thursday 27th November, the proposal for a Business Improvement District for Carlisle has been successful.
The Chamber looks forward to continuing to work closely with and supporting the BID.
Major milestone for new programme offering employment support to thousands in Cumbria
The new Connect to Work programme is set to support up to 3,000 people across the county who face barriers to employment due to health, disability or personal circumstances.
Leading Cumberland based charity Inspira has been appointed as Service Co-ordinator for the £10m programme, working in partnership with Cumberland and Westmorland & Furness Councils through Enterprising Cumbria.
Launching in January 2026, Connect to Work will offer up to 12 months of tailored support, helping people into real jobs and giving them the tools to thrive.
Funded by the Department for Work and Pensions, this programme marks a major step forward in inclusive employment support across Cumbria.
Cumbria Chamber of Commerce is pleased to be a delivery partner working with Inspira to deliver self-employment and employer engagement activity.
New proposed statutory rates
The government has released its new proposed statutory rates which apply from 6th April 2026.
Statutory pay for maternity, adoption, paternity, shared parental, parental bereavement, and neonatal care leave all increase from £187.18 per week to £194.32 per week.
Statutory sick pay (SSP) will also increase from £118.75 per week to £123.25 per week.
M6 Weekend Closures – information for local businesses
National Highways and Network Rail are holding a series of drop-in sessions ahead of the planned M6 weekend closures required for the replacement of the Clifton rail bridge.
The events are set up to for businesses to find out more about the scope of work, ask questions about potential disruption, impacts on staff travel, deliveries and customer access and hear directly from the project teams.
Sessions still to take place are:
Businesses who may be affected are encouraged to attend with further updates shared as they become available.
Open call
Plexal have issued an open call for companies that can provide asset tracking solutions.
Plexal is working with a client looking for businesses providing technologies to autonomously identify, track and locate inventory and proactively identify misplaced assets – particularly those that work in on-premise environments which don’t require WiFi.
For more information and to apply click here – applications are open until Tuesday 23rd December.
Applications for Positive Enterprise Programme are now open
Cumbria Community Foundation is now accepting applications for the Positive Enterprise programme.
Positive Enterprise is a competition open to young people aged between 14 and 25 who have a business idea they want to turn into a reality. There’s the chance to win up to £1,000 which could be used to pay for things like equipment, materials, stock and services to help get their business up and running as well as receiving mentoring from industry experts.
Find out more here
External branding specialist needed
Cumbria Tourism is looking for an external branding specialist to carry out a full review of their non visitor facing brand architecture, narrative and communications.
Full details, including the specification and requirements, are available here
Any questions relating to the ITQ should be submitted in writing to sclarke@cumbriatourism.org by 9am on Tuesday 23rd December.
The closing date and time for the receipt of submissions and all requested documentation relating to this stage is 9am on Monday 5th January 2026. Late submissions will not be accepted. Submissions will only be accepted if they are returned via email to sclarke@cumbriatourism.org
Pioneer Park Tender Opportunity
BEC has reached a major milestone for Pioneer Park, West Cumbria’s emerging clean energy hub and are now inviting organisations to help shape the next chapter.
BEC are looking for a partner to establish and manage a Project Management Office (PMO) that will deliver a comprehensive master plan for Pioneer Park. This work will build on BECs initial market engagement and define the vision for the future.
You can find out more here
Webinar available through the Department for Business & Trade
18 December - VAT in Europe: Top tips from SimplyVAT
Tax experts break down the VAT implications of selling in the EU, helping you trade with confidence.
Reforms to apprenticeship system
The Government has announced a £725 million package of reforms to the apprenticeship system to help tackle youth unemployment and drive economic growth. The funding package includes a £140 million pilot, where mayoral authorities will be able to connect young people with thousands of apprenticeship opportunities with local employers. The reforms are designed to tackle the sharp decline in apprenticeship starts among young people, which have fallen by almost 40% since 2015/16.
Read more about the reforms here
FREE: Tourism & Hospitality Webinar: Wealth & Succession Planning for the Leisure and Tourism Sectors
Join Burnetts and Armstrong Watson for a tourism and hospitality focused free webinar in collaboration with Cumbria Tourism.
Together they’ll discuss how family run businesses in the Leisure and Tourism sectors can best plan for future succession. The webinar will cover the issues requiring consideration and how to make more informed decisions for bringing in the next generation. The team will also highlight useful strategies that can be implemented to transfer and/or protect wealth, particularly in light of the November 2025 Budget and the Inheritance Tax changes effective from 6th April 2026.
Book your free place HERE – this webinar is open to both Cumbria Tourism members and non-members.
