Nature Restoration Fund - How to Apply

There has been a tremendous response across Scotland to harness the opportunities provided by the NRF.  You can view the Nature Restoration Fund story map to see the range of projects supported across Scotland.

Nature Restoration Fund

The Nature Restoration Fund has two streams, Helping Nature, for grants of £25,000 to £250,000 and Transforming Nature for grants of £250,000 upwards, including development projects. 

We are currently accepting applications to NRF for Transforming Nature Development projects. 

Application deadlines

•    Monday 12 August at 12 noon for a decision in November 2024
•    Thursday 28 November at 12 noon for a decision in March 2025

Please note:

•   the deadline for submitting an Expression of Interest in time to submit an application for the 12 August deadline has now passed.

•   the deadline for 28 November 2024 is only available for Transforming Nature Development phase funding. Development phase funding is available for a maximum of one year and all NRF projects must be completed by the end of March 2026. 
 

Submit an Expression of Interest

We are currently only accepting Expressions of Interest (EOI) for the Transforming Nature Development stream.

EOIs are a mandatory requirement for applicants and we aim to respond to your EOI within 20 working days.

Nature Restoration Fund – Expression of Interest

You can submit an EOI for the 28 November 2024 application deadline anytime prior to noon on Friday 4 October 2024. 

We encourage you to submit your EOI significantly in advance so you have time to consider our feedback before progressing to an application, if you are invited to apply. 

We will not accept any new Expressions of Interest after noon on Friday 4 October 2024. 

You should read the guidance below before submitting your Expression of Interest form to [email protected].

Information for Applicants and Priorities for Action are key guidance documents with detailed information on the fund.

Resources

• Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) Information for Applicants Guidance
• Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) Priorities for Action Guidance
• Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) Transforming Nature Development Guidance
• Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) How to Acknowledge our support for your project Guidance 
• Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) Procurement Guidance
• Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) Landowner Permission form - statement to be signed by all relevant landowners agreeing to 10 year compliance period for all land management and site improvement works funded through NRF. Completed declarations will need to be sent to the relevant NatureScot Funding Officer or [email protected] prior to any Funding Offer being issued.
• Fair Work First - guidance for funding applicants
• Fair Work First - employer declaration form - to be completed by funding recipients to provide evidence of complying with the Fair Work First Policy. Completed declarations and related evidence should be sent to your NatureScot Funding Officer or [email protected] prior to any Funding Offer being issued.
• Financial Information and Records Guidance 
• NatureScot Standard Terms and Conditions of Funding - you need to read and accept these conditions when you apply.
• Funding Privacy Notice - outlines how our use of personal data complies with data protection law. 

Questions

If you have any questions on the application process or the fund, please email [email protected] in the first instance.

We may adjust the process or documents in response to feedback from applicants.  For version control purposes, changes or updates will be clearly marked on the website.  It is the applicants’ responsibility to ensure the most up-to-date versions are used at the time of submission. 

Header image - Photo credit - Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT).