We look forward to receiving bids from a wide range of partners, enabling us to focus investment on grassroots projects that will deliver against our key outcomes - ‘grow, sustain and excel’.

The Small Grants Programme offers a simple, speedy way for grassroots sports projects to access National Lottery grants of between £300 and £10,000. The benefits include:

• An online application form, with decisions made within six weeks
• No need for partnership funding
• Simple conditions and measurement requirements
• £7 million available in this financial year.

Sportsmatch will continue to build upon the exceptional success it has had since 1992 in levering private money into grassroots sport. £3 million of Exchequer funding is available, and improvements for this year include:

Expanded eligibility " the programme will now match sponsorship from the private sector, trusts, charities and individuals

• The maximum grant has been increased to £100,000, with a maximum capital grant of £25,000 for equipment projects
• The maximum number of private investors per application has increased from three to five.

Over the coming 12 months we expect to receive well over six thousand applications to these schemes, and three other new funding programmes - from the local hockey club that needs a strip for a new youth team to the rural local authority with a million-pound project to create mountain bike trails and employ cycling coaches.

To ensure that everyone who applies receives the best possible service " and to allow thorough testing of the new processes " we have decided to stagger the opening of the other new programmes. The revised timetable is as follows:

• The first of our themed funding rounds, the Rural Communities Themed Round, will begin accepting applications from 24 April
• Applicants with breakthrough ideas for grassroots sport can apply to the new Innovation Fund from 12 May
• The Sustainable Facilities Fund will also open on 12 May.

More information about all of these programmes can be found on the new funding section our website here.

If you have any questions please contact Sport England on 08458 508 508.