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£10m hospitality fund opens to help local pubs, cafés and restaurants grow

A new three-year UK grant scheme will back independent hospitality businesses, bring empty premises back into use and support training, with more than £3 million earmarked for community-pub charity Pub is The Hub.

By THE TEA · 2 September 2026

People gathered inside a hospitality venue for the launch of the UK Hospitality Grant Scheme. Image: Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade / Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0Original source

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pubs, cafés and restaurants across the UK are being offered a new route to investment through a £10 million hospitality programme launched today.

The three-year scheme is designed to help new hospitality ventures get started, bring vacant premises back into use and support training programmes that can give people practical skills and routes into work.

More than £3 million of the funding has been earmarked for Pub is The Hub, the not-for-profit organisation that helps pubs diversify into services that communities may otherwise struggle to keep locally.

That can mean helping a pub add a shop, café, post office-style service, community space or another useful local facility, particularly in places where other amenities have disappeared.

The wider fund is intended to support independent operators rather than large chains, with an emphasis on businesses and projects that can strengthen local economies and create opportunities for people entering the hospitality sector.

The scheme was announced by the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade on 2 September 2026. Applicants should check the official guidance for , application routes and deadlines before committing to costs.