Pembrokeshire Streetscape Enhancement Scheme (2025)

Guidance and how to apply

On this page:

1. Introduction

2. Eligibility

3. What can you use the grant for?

4. What you cannot use the grant for

5. Application and assessment

6. Procurement rules

7. Subsidy control

8. Post completion - Terms and conditions

9. Clawback of funds

10. Data protection

11. How to apply

Guidance is subject to change.

1. Introduction

As part of our ongoing commitment to Regeneration in Pembrokeshire, we are delivering the Streetscape Enhancement Scheme that is funded by the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund.

The aim of the grant intervention is to improve the attractiveness of town centre commercial properties in order to encourage footfall and support businesses and organisations to create new jobs and strengthen the mix of businesses within the town centre whilst improving the overall look of the surrounding area.

The Streetscape Enhancement Scheme offers a grant of 80%, up to a maximum grant value of £24,999, towards the total expenditure of upgrading the external property facades of retail town centre properties in the town centre zones of Fishguard and Goodwick, Haverfordwest, Milford Haven, Pembroke, Pembroke Dock and Tenby.

This new grant scheme is an extension to the previous paint scheme enhancement scheme for commercial properties which is continuing within the town centre zones of the above towns, and for St Davids, Saundersfoot, Narberth, Crymych and Newport.

The paint scheme enhancement will provide funding for 80% of the costs, up to a maximum grant value of £4,999, towards the repainting of street facing façade(s).

2. Eligibility

The fund will support owners of eligible commercial properties and tenants/leaseholders who have the written consent of the property owner.

The Streetscape Enhancement Scheme includes the town centre areas for the following towns: Fishguard and Goodwick, Haverfordwest, Milford Haven, Pembroke, Pembroke Dock, Tenby. Please contact us to find out the eligible area of phases currently in progress. The façade of the property must be visible from the street the property is located on.

The paint scheme enhancement will provide funding for 80% of the costs, up to a maximum grant value of £4,999, towards the repainting of street facing façade(s).

Local Authority charges due by applicants must be paid up to date.

3. What can you use the grant for?

The Streetscape Enhancement Scheme supports the following works:

Replacement of signage
Treatment, cleaning, repair or replacement of street facing windows / facias / guttering and downpipes
Repair or replacement of render to external façade of the building (including any street facing elevations)
Repair and improvement work to the street facing elevation of the premises
Decoration of the external façade of the building (including any street facing elevations)

The paint scheme enhancement will provide funding for 80% of the costs, up to a maximum grant value of £4,999, towards the repainting of street facing façade(s).

Signage/advertisements

The display or advertisements is regulated by the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations 1992. The Regulations set out classes of Advertisements that are exempt from direct control and classes of advertisements which can be displayed with ‘deemed consent’ provided they comply with limits in terms of sign and permission. Advertisements which are not exempt and do not comply with the limitations for ‘deemed consent’ will need an application for express consent. The guide which can be accessed via the attached link relates to England and is provided for general information only as the Welsh Advertisement Regulations are not the same. If your proposal relates to upgrading or changing your signage, then you should contact the Planning Department for further advice.

Please also contact the Planning Department if you are unsure whether your proposed changes require planning consent. You should satisfy yourself on whether planning consent is required for your proposed work before submitting an application for the Streetscape Enhancement Scheme.

Pembrokeshire County Council - 01437 764551

website: Planning and building control

Pembrokeshire Coast National Park - 01646 624800

website: Pembrokeshire Coast - planning (opens in a new tab)

Properties can be already in occupation, or vacant with the aim of bringing the retail space back into use. Funds can be used for the purchase of materials or towards the cost of using a contractor. It is appreciated that additional factors may need to be considered for certain properties and as such these costs, such as scaffolding and preparation work, will be considered as part of the application.

Applicants are able to request funding for materials only and will need to submit copies of receipts when making a grant claim for 80% of these costs. Where a contractor is used, the level of grant will be based on meeting 80% of costs of the selected supplier and provide a written quotation to confirm the costs.

The maximum grant award per property is £24,999, or £4,999 for paint scheme only enhancement.

Applicants to the Streetscape Enhancement Scheme can only apply once per property, but can also benefit from independent applications made to other SPF activities including Placemaking Grant, the Pembrokeshire Business Grants or the Sustainable Communities Grants. However, note the Subsidy Control section below.

Listed building consent and advice on Conservation Areas can be obtained by contacting the Council Historic Buildings and Conservation Officer for the appropriate area:

Fishguard & Goodwick, Haverfordwest, Milford Haven, Pembroke, Pembroke Dock: Listed buildings and conservation area

Tenby: Pembrokeshire Coast - building conservation - listed buildings (opens in a new tab)

Please note: It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure all required building or planning consent is obtained prior to any works taking place, noting the timeframe for completion of works. Repair work and alterations to a building which do not materially affect the external appearance of a building do not constitute development and therefore do not require an application for planning permission. Painting of the exterior of any building or work is permitted development (not needing an application for planning permission) provided the painting is not for the purpose of advertisement or direction. Improvement or alteration to signage may need advertisement consent and enquiries relating to whether an application for advertisement consent should be made to the relevant Council’s Development Management (Planning) Team (see contact details above). It is important to note that painting of a listed building, minor alterations to a listed building which may not require planning permission and changes to signage on a listed building may require listed building consent.

4. What you cannot use the grant for

No expenditure should be incurred before grant approval, as the grants cannot be awarded retrospectively. This includes work for which contracts have already been signed or orders placed, before funding approval.

If the business is VAT registered, then VAT will be ineligible. VAT will be payable in cases of non-VAT registered companies where VAT is not recoverable.

Cash purchases will not be considered for grant payment.

Items purchased through lease purchase, hire purchase, extended credit agreements/finance leases will not be considered for grant funding.

Ineligible expenditure includes:

General revenue expenditure such as, staff costs or any other taxes, hire purchase/lease purchases, solicitor fees.
Planning application fees.
Payment for items or expenditure made by cash.
Projects for residential properties will not be eligible.

5. Application and assessment

This is an open call for applications. The last date for receipt of applications is 30th June 2025. Schemes must be able to be completed by 31^st October 2025.

It should be noted that the Streetscape Enhancement Scheme is a discretionary grant and is subject to assessment for value for money and approval by Pembrokeshire County Council. Each application will be assessed by a panel that meets monthly, to consider applications that meet the standard.

Please note: Applications must be fully completed before they are presented to panel so essential requirements such as match funding, Listed building consent (where applicable), planning permission (where applicable) etc. must be confirmed before the grant team will prepare the application for consideration at panel.

If the scheme is oversubscribed the applicants eligible to continue in the application process will be allocated on a first come first served basis.

The applicants eligible to continue in the application process will be notified by email within the 14 days following panel assessment of the application.

The successful applicants will be required to obtain all necessary consents and comply with legislation and codes of practice including health and safety which apply to such works.

Funding will not be paid for retrospective works and Pembrokeshire County Council reserves the right to reject any application.

6. Procurement rules - Getting quotes

When procuring works, goods and services, applicants are expected to conduct the process in a manner that ensures openness, value for money and fairness and must follow the procurement procedures as they are outlined in this section.

When providing details of costs to support your application, please ensure that total project costs are provided so that the grant value can be calculated appropriately. Details on whether VAT is to be added should also be included in the quotation.

For schemes where the applicant completes work themselves, copies of receipts for all materials must be submitted to claim 80% of costs, up to a maximum grant value of £24,999. The original receipts must be retained by the applicant. Please note that cash purchases are ineligible for consideration, and evidence of payment (bank transaction) will be required when processing the grant payment.
For schemes where the applicant uses a contractor, a written quotation must be provided. For projects with an estimated total value of up to £10,000 (£12,000 including VAT), we are able to consider applications based on one quotation as long as value for money can be demonstrated.
For schemes where the applicant uses a contractor, a written quotation must be provided. For projects with an estimated value of between £10,000 (£12,000 including VAT) and £25,000 (£30,000 including VAT) we request a minimum of three written quotations be sought from competitive sources to ensure best value. The quotes must be based on the same specification and evaluated on a like for like basis.
A documented record of the quotes sought, the evaluation process and the decision to award should be recorded.
Records of decision-making regarding the selection of the nominated supplier must be retained for audit and claim purposes.

Avoiding conflicts of interest in procurement

We recognise it is possible applicants or persons connected with them (such as relatives, business partners or friends) may wish to tender for a contract being offered by the applicant.

This is acceptable, but applicants will need to ensure that the tendering process is undertaken in an open, transparent and in a fair manner, as outlined above, which does not give one person or company tendering any advantage over another, which arises from the process. If an applicant / developer or any person connected with them, has an interest in any of the potential bids for a contract offered:

That applicant/developer, person or party with an interest must outline that interest in writing.
That person or party with an interest should take no part whatsoever in any of the tender evaluation procedures.

7. Subsidy control

This scheme is covered by the current UK Government Subsidy Control Act 2022 and is being administered as Minimal Financial Assistance (MFA). The total amount of Minimal Financial Assistance (MFA) received over a rolling period of three fiscal years may not exceed £315,000 per business. It is the applicant's responsibility to monitor the level of Minimum Financial Assistance received. You will be asked to confirm that this will not be exceeded in the event of an offer being made. [Please note that the MFA limit applies at company group level].

Grants will only be awarded in compliance with the Subsidy Control Act 2022.

8. Terms and conditions

Grants are offered subject to the completion of satisfactory subsidy control and due diligence checks and are purely for the purpose of the works detailed in the offer letter pack, which will be issued to the applicant following approval of the award.

Grants will not be offered or paid if the business or applicant is in arrears with any payment to any of the participating local authorities operating the scheme.

Should the application be successful, the grant money is paid directly into the bank account of the applicant business. This is based on receipt or evidence of purchase and defrayment i.e. original or on-line printed bank statements and original invoices to confirm expenditure. Please note that cash purchases are ineligible for consideration, and evidence of payment (bank transaction) will be required when processing the grant payment.

If the Works are completed for less than the cost estimate on which our grant offer was based, the grant will be paid on a pro rata basis. The Grant will not be increased if there is any overspend.

The applicant must accept the terms and conditions of the grant by completing the Grant Acceptance Form within 30 days from receipt. All expenditure associated to the grant must be completed within 3 months of the date of approval letter, or by 31^st October 2025 whichever is the earliest date.

Claims must be submitted no later than 10^th November 2025. No extension will be given for the submission of the claim. Early claim submissions once projects are complete are encouraged.

Should the project not proceed within the period stipulated in the offer of grant, the offer of grant will automatically lapse. Any variation to the Terms & conditions set out in the approval letter must be requested and agreed.

Any deviations to the application in terms of suppliers and expenditure must be requested to the grant team prior to purchase. Failure to seek approval may result in the grant not being paid for those items.

Limited Companies must use the business bank account to purchase all the items associated to the grant. It is encouraged for Sole Traders and partnerships that all goods purchased in relation to the grant are purchased using the business bank account. Cash purchases will not be considered for grant payment. Items purchased with credit cards are eligible, but applicants will need to evidence the transaction on their credit card bill. Limited companies must use the business credit cards to purchase items associated to the grant rather than personal cards of the director(s).

If there is any change to the VAT status of the organisation, the applicant is responsible for notifying Pembrokeshire County Council immediately as this may result in a change to the eligible costs of the grant.

This is a discretionary grant payable upon completion, final date of submission of claims will be 10^th November 2025. Claims submitted after this date will not be paid. Please allow 28 days for processing.

The applicant will be held liable for the extent of works carried out and on behalf of the applicant. No liability shall be accepted in respect of works by Pembrokeshire County Council. The Council shall not be held responsible for any loss or damage to property, materials or injuries to individuals caused by the personal actions of the applicant or the person(s) undertaking the works on their behalf before, during or after such works have been carried out.

It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure all required building or planning consent is obtained prior to any works taking place, noting the timeframe for completion of works.

The applicant will take appropriate and practical measures to ensure the environment in which works are being carried out is safe to avoid risk of injury to themselves, and/or other parties. The Council accepts no liability for the actions of the applicant or their appointed contractor which result in damage or injury to persons or property. Please note that where a contractor is engaged to deliver the work, the Contract is between the applicant and the contractor. All contractors carrying out works must be tax compliant.

The applicant is responsible for ensuring that adequate insurance cover is held on the property, the works and any materials/goods as part of the project.

The successful applicants will be required to complete the approved works, in a satisfactory manner, on or before the final claim date supplying photographic evidence and copies of invoices and proof of payment, prior to payment release. In some instances, a site visit will be required before payment is approved.

The successful applicants will be required to complete the approved works, in a satisfactory manner, and within a specified time frame. Failure to achieve the committed outputs could result in non-payment of the grant.

The successful applicants must apply for payment of the approved grant (by submitting receipts for materials or contractor invoices, with evidence of expenditure) when work has been completed and in any event before 10^th November 2025.

Cash purchases are not eligible for grant payment and that claims will only be processed upon receipt of evidenced expenditure through proof of bank payment(s).

The works carried out using this funding must be maintained for at least 12 months following of the final payment of grant or 31^st March 2026; whichever is the earliest date.

The Council shall have the right to publish the amount of funding, property address and a brief description of the purposes of the funding without the consent of the recipient for promotional purposes of the scheme. Any promotion of the works undertaken by the applicant should acknowledge the Council’s support via the Shared Prosperity Funding guidelines.

Successful applicants are required to understand that the Council is subject to the requirements of the Code of Practice on Access to Information published by the Welsh Government (the Code), the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the FOIA), the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (the EIR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (the DPA).

The Council shall have the right to publish the amount of funding, the name of the recipient and a brief description of the purposes of the funding without the consent of the recipient in relation to any FOIA or the EIR. In relation to any request under the FOIA or the EIR requiring any disclosure of the recipient's documents the Council shall seek the Recipient’s views on such disclosure and shall take those views into account when complying with its statutory obligations.

9. Repayment of grant funds

The grant must be repaid in full on demand if the applicant:

Is found to have made any misrepresentation in connection with the application.
Subsequently incurs significant variance to the approved scheme, from the details that you provided in your application, within the economic life of the work.
If it should emerge that a grant has been paid other than in compliance with the Subsidy Control Act 2022 it will be recovered with interest.

10. Data protection and privacy

Pembrokeshire County Council is the data controller for the personal information you provide on this form. Your information will be used in the exercise of our official authority and will not be used for any other purpose. Please note that we may check the data you provide here against other Council and UK Government datasets in order to verify your application and prevent fraud. For further information on how Pembrokeshire County Council handles your data, please see our corporate privacy notice.

The personal information we have collected from you will be shared with fraud prevention agencies who will use it to prevent fraud and money laundering and to verify your identity. If fraud is detected, you could be refused certain services, finance, or employment. Further details of how your information will be used by us and these fraud prevention agencies, and your data protection rights, can be found by visiting: CIFAS (opens in a new tab)

11. How to apply

Before applying, please ensure that you have thoroughly read the above guidance and understand the scope of the grant. If you have any queries prior to applying, please contact the team using the below email address.

You will be required to provide supporting information following initial assessment of your application. Upon receipt of your application, the team will contact you to request the following:

Due diligence information (ID / proof of address / proof of bank account)
Confirmation of proposed works and copies of relevant quotation(s)
Confirmation that, if successful, payment of the award will comply with subsidy control regulations (as detailed above). Please remember that the MFA financial threshold applies at company group level.

To request an application form, please contact the team on spfstreetenhancement@pembrokeshire.gov.uk

Please note that cash purchases are ineligible for consideration, and evidence of payment (bank transaction) will be required when processing the grant payment, if your application is successful.

UK Shared Prosperity Funding