This is a new fund with grants up to £45,000 for innovative solutions that increase the recycling or reuse of on-the-go paper cups in the UK. The funding is from the National Cup Recycling Scheme (NCRS), administered by Valpak.
Potential activities include awareness campaigns designed to increase recycling rates, improvements to collection and recycling infrastructure, and research that develops practical solutions for the recyclability of paper cups.
You can apply for a grant to cover staff costs, project materials and equipment, communications, venue or travel expenses, data and evaluation, professional fees and reasonable project-related overheads.
Applications can be made by businesses, local authorities, universities, research institutions, startups and social enterprises. Collaborative projects will also be considered, provided one organisation acts as the lead applicant.
Focus of fund/fund aims:
Grants to help reduce the environmental impact of single-use paper cups by creating and testing scalable solutions for their reuse or recycling
Application deadline:
31 October 2025