We are no longer accepting applications for 2024-25 projects. 

Any projects that have been applied for and are successful will have until 31 March 2026 to complete the work and submit and end-of-project report. 

Please download and read the full terms and conditions.

PEBBLE Fund Terms and Conditions (Summary)

• Applications are welcomed from any group or organisation with an environmental or conservation project designed to protect and/or enhance biodiversity. This could be a local river group, environmental charity or organisation, community group, charity or association, school or educational group.
• The project must aim to lead to a direct improvement to a habitat or species with the community and/or environment seeing a benefit. Projects that are purely for research will not be funded
• The project location must be within the water company supply area
• The applicant organisation must own the land or have permission from the land owner for the project
• Projects cannot be funded retrospectively. The application should be for work that will take place in the future. We appreciate there may be crossover of annual periods due to the nature of projects so funding could be allocated over a number of years
• The project must meet the company criteria for biodiversity, conservation and community engagement
• The project must work in partnership and consult with appropriate stakeholders
• The project must include details of how the improvements or success will be measured, by monitoring and/or reporting
• Level 2 and Level 3 projects must have explored alternative or match funding opportunities
• A failure to provide all supporting information and evidence may result in us requiring you to repay the grant (in whole or part).
• The project will be publicised on our website and social media channels.

Applications  
The 2024 PEBBLE Fund will be open for applications from Monday 15 April 2024 to Monday 2 September 2024.

The award process
Applications will be assessed by a panel and projects selected for funding will be chosen in the autumn.

The successful projects will be advised and announced. (Please check our timeline for the dates.)

As part of the award, projects will be expected to participate in publicity and promotion of Cambridge Water’s PEBBLE Fund and submit a report, including photographs, a description of the project and the improvement and benefits it provides.

The PEBBLE fund aims to directly help improve biodiversity, so the following items are not eligible for funding:

- Sensory equipment/outdoor classroom equipment
- Garden equipment including furniture and most tools
- Decorations/ornaments
- Pond dipping platforms
- Paths/access
Research/investigations/surveys where they are not fundamental to the project deliverables
- Consultancy fees
- Outdoor facilities including handwashing stations or toilet facilities
- Anything else which does not directly link to biodiversity gain

Please note, this is not an exhaustive list. Other items, not listed, may not be funded if they are not deemed to contribute to biodiversity improvement.

You can apply for funding of up to £10,000. This table is a guide to show you the amount of funding that previous projects have been successful in receiving. As this is a competitive fund, unfortunately we will not be able to fund all projects.

To maximise the chance of your project receiving full funding, and to help applicants avoid disappointment, we recommend that you stick to similar budgets.

It is imperative that a detailed cost breakdown is included in your application to give all aspects of your project the greatest chance of being funded.

We aim to let all applicants know the outcome of their application by the end of September.. 


PEBBLE timetable