Grants

SMEEF operates grant rounds as and when we have sufficient funds in the pot. Grant rounds have previously focused on project development (getting started, baseline survey and other activation activities) and capital needs (purchase of equipment and improvement to facilities).

As a broad guide we consider ‘marine and coastal’ to include species and habitats where salt water plays a crucial role in the natural life cycle. The species or habitat at the heart of your application must fit this definition.

For-profit projects and organisations are welcome to apply to SMEEF but they should form part of a consortium application with a non-profit or other similar legal structure or community group.

Our grant fund is currently closed for applications. In the meantime you can read about the types of projects funded and case studies in our Impact Report and view previous (and ongoing) projects on our map or on our Projects page. 

You can register for our mailing list by emailing info@smeef.scot. 

 

Grants

SMEEF is delighted to have run our first privately financed grant round and we would like to express our gratitude to the donors who have made this possible.

SMEEF is currently closed for new grant applications. The following is general guidance and is subject to change without notice.

Join our mailing list to stay up to date – email info@smeef.scot.

SMEEF Priorities

The main aim of the Scottish Marine Environmental Enhancement Fund (SMEEF) is to support practical improvements to Scottish marine and coastal ecosystems. Although we anticipate that most applications for enhancement projects will initially focus on salt marsh, seagrass, sand dunes, native oysters, marine birds and cetaceans; we are keen to receive proposals for research to inform a broader range of potential marine and coastal enhancement opportunities across all relevant species and habitats.

SMEEF aims to support a range of restoration activities, examples of restoration, recovery or enhancement could include:

  • Habitat improvements, for example, relating to sand dunes, seagrass, saltmarsh and native oyster beds.
  • Measures to restore, recover or enhance mobile species for example relating to marine birds or cetaceans.
  • Invasive species eradication. 
  • Other activities, including citizen science, which help to improve our understanding of human pressures on the marine environment, particularly if they are part of a practical restoration project.  

Projects should always:

  • Be as collaborative as possible and have a clear engagement plan for involving interested groups,
  • Demonstrate clear additionality to existing and already committed actions,
  • Be informed by science; driven by knowledge and backed up by monitoring.

Please note that there is a lot of useful advice available on the NatureScot website. In particular, applicants are encouraged to pay close attention to the Scottish Code for Conservation Translocations and, where relevant, the Community Led Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Handbook. 

If you would like to discuss your application please email grants@smeef.scot.

What kind of projects will be supported?

SMEEF is a flexible fund that responds to the needs of the marine restoration community in Scotland. 

There is no maximum or minimum physical size of project. We encourage applicants to work at a manageable scale where outcomes can be measured and to consider the strategic fit with other protection and enhancement measures such as the Marine Protected Areas network and national and regional marine planning. 

SMEEF is currently closed for applications.

Register with info@smeef.scot for updates. 

Conditions of Funding

The following general conditions apply to SMEEF funding:

  • We will not normally fund exactly the same project twice. However we can fund a new phase of an ongoing or existing project. 
  • We cannot pay for activities that have already started. 
  • The applicant(s) must be based in the UK and all projects must be delivered in Scotland. 
  • Projects should focus on the marine and coastal environment. The habitats and species at the heart of the project should be reliant on the marine environment as a major part of their nutrient or life cycle. 

Please note – All outputs must be open access, have a robust methodology and be reviewed by relevant experts.

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What costs can be funded?

Costs that can usually be funded:

  • Staff costs inclusive of salary, National Insurance and Employee Pension Contributions
  • Professional fees that are appropriate and proportionate to the project
  • Project staff travel and subsistence to cover staff and any volunteers supporting delivery of the project activities
  • Project evaluation – additional costs for measuring success and evaluating the project
  • Equipment and resources to deliver the project
  • Dissemination of the project outcomes
  • Irrecoverable VAT
  • In addition, we recognise that each site/proposal is unique and other non-standard items may be needed. You should discuss any other costs you are considering applying for with a SMEEF member of staff before you submit your application.

What will not be funded?

  • SMEEF is unable to fund statutory functions
  • The main applicant cannot be a for profit company, however they can make up a minority interest of a consortium bid
  • The project can include financial returns or cost recovery through a financial mechanism but the main aim of the project must be biodiversity/ecosystem gains, not profit.
  • SMEEF will not fund political activity or campaigns
  • Creation or repairing of tracks for access to sites will not normally be funded
  • SMEEF will not usually be able to cover ‘Full Cost Recovery’ for staff posts
How to apply

This grant is currently closed. Join our mailing list to stay up to date – email info@smeef.scot

Engagement, Equity and Diversity

We know that early involvement of as wide a range of people as possible in your project has many benefits. By talking to people about your plans, involving them in the design of the project and helping them overcome any barriers to getting involved you are not only creating a pool of potential advocates and volunteers, but you are also helping to ensure that, long after your funding ends, your project continues to be embedded in the community.

SMEEF asks applicants to submit an engagement plan along with their request for funding. This should be proportionate to your project and demonstrate how you have engaged, or plan to engage, with local communities and also communities of interest. We are keen to know how you will identify and attempt to remove barriers which might stand in the way of people with protected characteristics* from getting involved as well as how your project will deliver opportunities to improve well-being.

*Protected Characteristics

  •   age;
  •   disability;
  •   gender reassignment;
  •   marriage and civil partnership;
  •   pregnancy and maternity;
  •   race;
  •   religion or belief;
  •   sex;
  •   sexual orientation.

Other sources of funding

The Scottish Marine Environmental Enhancement Fund is not the only source of funding available to restoration projects, for example, you could approach local aquaculture and renewable energy companies in your area for direct funding. Here are some additional ideas for places to look for support. Please check with the organisations concerned for more details.

NatureScot

  • The Sottish Government’s Nature Restoration Fund is a competitive fund administered by NatureScot which supports projects that restore wildlife and habitats on land and sea and address the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change.
  • Monitoring Equipment fund: The Community Marine Monitoring Equipment Fund is a dedicated fund aimed specifically at supporting community and local groups with the purchase of marine survey equipment to participate in community-led marine biodiversity surveys and monitoring.

Crown Estate Scotland

The Community Capacity Grants Programme aims to provide early-stage financial support for local projects that will help achieve the following objectives:

  1. Create self-sustaining community enterprises that will promote sustainable development through the provision of local economic, social, and/or environmental benefits.
  2. Contribute to the regeneration of places through improvements to buildings or community spaces that will support self-sustaining community enterprises delivering sustainable development. 

The fund is open to all communities that are:

  • Situated up to 5 miles from coastal and estuarine foreshore in Scotland; or 
  • Situated up to 5 miles from the Scottish Crown Estate’s four rural estates (Glenlivet, Fochabers, Whitehills and Applegirth)

Foundation Scotland

The Baillie Gifford Community Awards support grass roots community organisations across the whole of Scotland and replaces Foundation Scotland’s Express Grants programme. The fund includes the environment as one of its priority areas for grant giving.

Sea-Changers

A small grants fund run by volunteers and covering grass roots activities across the UK.

Photos by ©Getty Images (Image 1) and Philip Price/seawilding.org (Image 2)

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