Government Minister James Brokenshire
Our application for funding to redevelop our Bexhill site, to create a hub of supportive workspaces for start-ups and small enterprises and extend our furniture store, was selected for the final stage of the Coastal Communities Fund (CCF). This is a highly competitive national grant scheme; only very strong project proposals reach the final round.
CCF received 61 final stage applications requesting a total of £84 million, against a budget of £34 million available, so only 40% could be successful. The final decisions were made by the Government’s Secretary of State of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Disappointingly, our bid was one of the 60% not selected for funding this time. And, without the CCF grant, we will not able to draw down the matched funding to go ahead with the redevelopment this year.
However, the hard work we have done to get the project to this stage, and all the support we have received from local organisations, means we are ready to go when new funding opportunities arise.
In the meantime, our Bexhill store is still busy providing affordable reused furniture for local residents and businesses. We’re not going away!
