The Place Programme – projects supporting groups in our communities

�� (SCC) currently has grants and support for residents and communities to implement projects which align with the priorities of �� residents.

This programme will run until the end of March 2026, and the available grants will close in 2025, so �� advise applying as early as possible.

You can find support across a range of themes, including flooding and resilience, energy, and nature recovery.

Our resident surveys show that the overwhelming majority of residents think action on restoring nature and tackling climate change is important (in fact only 5% say it’s ‘not important’). Nearly half of �� residents say they are already witnessing nature and habitat loss, and 1/3 say they have witnessed increased flooding and disruption to services due to climate change.

Therefore, the support and grants on offer are aligned with restoring nature (under the Local Nature Recovery Strategy), reducing energy use and costs, preventing flooding and increasing resilience to extreme weather events

Below is a summary of the initiatives �� are supporting through ��’s Place Programme. For any queries, or to request an application form for a grant, please contact greenerfutures@surreycc.gov.uk

Flooding and Resilience

Resilient Schools grants

Many schools across �� face challenges with flooding or rising temperatures affecting students learning, and in some cases causing classrooms to be closed. This impacts young people’s learning, and can have significant knock-on effects, for example on ��’s local economy when parents need to stay at home to look after children when schools are closed.

We can provide grants of up to £7000 per school to pilot approaches that build resilience to the rising impacts of climate change. Under this scheme you can:

Create a climate risk assessment for your school
Install rain gardens or sustainable drainage solutions
Plant tress

Application window: 29 September 2025 to 17 November 2025

Community Nature grants and giveaways

Community Nature and Flood Attenuation grants

Community groups, parish councils and resident associations can apply for a grant to assist in the delivery of ��’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS). ��’s LNRS is one of 48 nature recovery strategies across the UK, and to successfully reverse ��’s above-average rate of nature decline we need collaborative action driven by residents and community groups.

You can apply for funding of projects up to £4000, and in some circumstances, we may provide up to £10,000 for projects of high impact. Projects you can fund under this scheme include:

Nest boxes – for example, for swifts, owls and bats
Grassland, heathland restoration or creation
Pond creation or restoration
Road verge improvement or restoration
Hedgerow creation or laying
Pocket parks
Rain gardens and small-scale SUDs
Free water butts (Nork and Tattenhams only)

Tree giveaways

Our Countryside Team will be donating around 4,000 native broadleaved trees to support nature recovery and increase the canopy cover for �� residents.

Our Tree Planting Team will be running giveaways this winter at 7 of ��’s Community Recycling Centres, giving away native trees, suitable for garden planting. Trees will be allocated through a pre- booking system which will be published before the giveaway events in November.

Trees will be donated with shared guidance on planting and maintenance, to give the planted trees the best chance of success enabling them to both thrive and survive.

Resilience installation

In recent years significant flooding from rivers and surface water has affected communities across ��, often with devastating effects to livelihoods and mental health. Working with two of these communities, �� is offering a community-level intervention to showcase the positive impact of flood prevention measures and reduce surface water entering drains and sewers, as well promote water conservation. This pilot will take place in Nork and Tattenhams, and Tadworth with the installation of 150 specialist water butts, working in partnership with residents to manage and mitigate flood risk.

Community flood advice

Following the success of the Home Energy Advice Team, a fantastic project run by Zero Carbon Guildford with Energy Action Redhill and Reigate and Circular Dorking - which has supported over 2000 �� homes with free energy advice - we are exploring ways in which to provide a similar community-led service for homes in areas at risk of flooding.

The scheme will be piloted in an area of high flood risk, but we encourage you to get in touch via greenerfutures@surreycc.gov.uk if you are either:

Interested in training to provide flood advice to your local area
Live in an area prone to flooding and are interested in creating a community-led initiative to safeguard residents with ��’s support

Energy

��’s One Stop Shop

We have partnered with Furbnow to support residents who are not eligible for the upcoming Warm Homes Local Grant with whole house home energy upgrade plans. If your property has an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of D to G, you could benefit from up to 20% off a Home Energy Plan and 30% off Design and Project Management support. Please note this discount does not apply to the installation costs themselves.

Find out more on the Home Energy Plans webpage, or register directly with to request a quote.

Community energy

We have partnered with �� Community Energy (SCE) to install renewables at sites which benefits community groups, charities, and local business. SCE is currently awaiting planning permission for the first site, and once successful a share offer will open to fund the purchase and installation of the solar array, whilst the billpayer receives a typically below-grid cost electricity price.

For more information read the Community Energy webpage, or get in touch with info@surreycommunityenergy.org

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