Official Statistics

Grants Statistics Bulletin 2022 to 2023

Published 21 March 2024

1. Purpose of this report

This report accompanies the release of the Government grants register 2022 to 2023. This report provides context to this grants spend data, an overview of grant spending and guidance notes on how the data has been compiled.

This release is classified as Official Statistics. The details of the ongoing improvements to these statistics are outlined in the statistics development plan accompanying this publication.

Government grants register 2022 to 2023 data release covers:

• General grants and formula grants (at both scheme and award level) across all government departments.
• Grants funded during the period 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023.
• Grants that are new for 2022 to 2023 and grants that were set up in previous years which have continued to be active in 2022 to 2023.
• Exchequer-funded grants (this excludes grants funded by devolved governments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland); this includes overseas aid provided by the UK government as grants, but excludes grants made by the EU or the UK government contribution to the EU.
• Any central government departments or arm’s length bodies (ALBs) that manage exchequer funded grants.
• Central government departments are presented in the structure that existed in 2022 to 2023, and so this publication does not reflect the machinery of government changes that subsequently occurred in 2023 to 2024 which resulted in the creation of four new departments (the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the Department for Business and Trade as well as a re-focused Department for Culture, Media and Sport).
• HM Treasury and the National Archives are included in this publication as they both managed exchequer funded grants in 2022 to 2023.

This data does not include:

• Grants-in-aid – these are funds allocated from one part of government to another part of government, for example, central government funding for the running costs of non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs).
• Details of awards made by Local Authorities.
• Details of fraud and error. Data relating to fraud and error is reported centrally and published annually in the Cross-Government Fraud Landscape Annual Report.

There are a number of notes and caveats that will help inform the interpretation of this data. A summary of these, as well as departmental statements, can be found at the end of this report. Full details can be found in the Quality and Methodology Information document, published alongside this report. Note that values presented in this report are rounded. Therefore totals may not equal the sum of their parts, and percentages may not add up to exactly 100%. The statistics in this report are based on unredacted data, so will not exactly match any statistics calculated directly from the accompanying government grants register.

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2. Introduction to government grants

Government grants are funds intended to be permanently transferred^{[footnote 1]} from a government organisation, to a grant recipient^{[footnote 2]}, in order to fulfil a policy or public interest need. Unlike contracts/procurements (e.g. for the purchase of goods or services), grants are provided with the focus on the outcomes and impacts of the activities being funded. Usually grants are awarded to finance (or reimburse expenditure on) the recipients’ activities in order to further the implementation of government policy or public interest, where it is neither appropriate nor possible for the government organisation to carry out those activities itself.

Grant spending accounts for around 14% of total UK government expenditure.^{[footnote 3]} Government grant funding plays an important role domestically, in areas such as education, research, civil society and innovation, and abroad through international aid projects.

Grants can be used for a number of purposes, including providing financial subsidies to deliver activities and outcomes, supporting government policy initiatives, and funding research, development and innovation. Examples of grant funding from 2022 to 2023 include awards for support with energy bills at a time of high energy prices, funding for the provision of apprenticeship training, and creating a more consolidated, devolved model of transport funding.

2.1 Allocation of government grants

There are two allocation methods by which grants are issued:

• Formula grants: are those calculated by way of a formula. This funding is provided, in recognition of specific criteria, by central government to organisations such as local authorities, schools and the police. Funding is determined by factors relevant to the purpose, such as population or number of pupils who receive free school meals. These grants account for 70% (£108.8 billion across 177 schemes) of government grant spending.

• General grants: allow the government to secure policy objectives which the market cannot, such as innovation and research, and they allow an effective funding route for the voluntary and charitable sectors, for example to address homelessness and regional inequalities. General grants account for 30% (£46.8 billion across 1,532 schemes) of government grant spending.

Source: Accompanying statistical tables – Table 1

2.2 Total grant spend by department and allocation method

The government spent £156 billion on grants in 2022 to 2023. This is a 10% decrease from £172 billion in 2021 to 2022. The DfE gave out the greatest amount of money as grants, accounting for £77.9 billion (50%) of the total value of government grants. This includes the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG), the General Annual Grant (GAG), and the 16-19 Education Grant; these three schemes account for a combined total of £61.0 billion. Large grant giving departments also include the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), the Department for Levelling Up Housing & Communities (DLUHC), and the Home Office (HO), which together with DfE gave out £137.6 billion (88%) of the total value of government grants.

Source: Accompanying statistical tables – Table 1

3. How grant spending has changed over time - from financial years 2018 to 2019 up to 2022 to 2023

In the financial years prior to 2020 to 2021, grants spending was broadly static at £113 billion in 2018 to 2019, and £118 billion in 2019 to 2020. This spend was dominated by formula grant schemes, making up around 70% of spend in both years.

In 2020 to 2021 and 2021 to 2022, grant spending played a key role in the UK government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Grant spending in 2020 to 2021 was £258 billion, more than doubling compared to previous years, with general grant spending higher than formula grant spending for the first time.

Grant spending in 2021 to 2022 decreased by 33% compared to 2020 to 2021, however it remained significantly higher than in earlier years. This was largely due to the continuation of grant spend to support the COVID-19 response, as well as increased formula grant spending to support economic recovery. The breakdown of this spending mostly returned to previous patterns, with formula grant spending making up 67% of total grant spending.

Grant spending in 2022 to 2023 decreased by 10% compared to 2021 to 2022. Grant spending by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) decreased by 99% compared to 2021 to 2022. This was a return to previous spending patterns for HMRC, following the closure of the Coronavirus Job Recovery Scheme (CJRS) and the Self Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS) which accounted for the majority of grant spending by HMRC in 2020 to 2021 and 2021 to 2022. Grant spending by the DLUHC decreased by 33% compared to 2021 to 2022. This was driven by a decrease in spend of their Expanded Retail Discount scheme, Deficit On Collection scheme as well as their Support for Energy Bills: Council Tax Rebate Scheme.

Grant spending by the BEIS increased by 55% compared to 2021 to 2022, with the launch of the Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS GB) and Energy Bill Relief Scheme Great Britain and Northern Ireland (EBRS GB&NI) totalling £17 billion in value in 2022 to 2023. The majority of formula grant spending continues to be associated with the DfE on schemes such as the DSG and the GAG. Details on grant spending over time for all departments can be found in Table 1 of the statistical tables accompanying this bulletin.

Source: Accompanying statistical tables – Table 1

4. Formula grants in financial year 2022 to 2023

Formula grants are those calculated by way of a formula. This funding is provided, in recognition of specific criteria, by central government to organisations such as local authorities, schools and the police. Funding is determined by factors relevant to the purpose, such as population or number of pupils who receive free school meals. These grants account for 70% (£108.8 billion across 177 schemes) of government grant spending. This is a 6% decrease on the value in 2021 to 2022, when £115.8 billion was funded via formula schemes.

Source: Accompanying statistical tables – Table 1

The largest formula grant funder is the DfE who provided £73.1 billion in formula grant funding during 2022 to 2023. Outside of the DfE, the next largest formula grant schemes are the HO’s £5.1 billion Police Main Grant and the DHSC’s £3.4 billion Public Health Ring-fenced Grant 22/23. See table 1 below for details on these schemes, and the government grants register, accompanying this bulletin, for details of all grant schemes.

Table 1: The 10 largest formula grants schemes

Department	Scheme Name	Purpose and objectives	Value
DfE	Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG)	The main funding for schools, high needs and early years education.	£29.2 billion
DfE	General Annual Grant (GAG)	The main monthly revenue funding for academies - allocations are net of Pupil Number Adjustment (PNA), Risk Protection Agreement (RPA) etc.	£26.9 billion
HO	Police Main Grant	Statutory funding to all Police and Crime Commissioners as the Police Main Grant, awarded under statute each year.	£5.1 billion
DfE	16-19 Education	To fund 16-19 further education and support.	£4.9 billion
DHSC	Public Health Ring-fenced Grant 22/23	The purpose of the grant is to provide local authorities in England with the funding required to discharge the public health functions. Subject to specified exceptions, the grant must be used only for meeting eligible expenditure incurred or to be incurred by local authorities for the purposes of their public health functions as specified in Section 73B(2) of the National Health Service Act 2006 (The 2006 Act).	£3.4 billion
HO	DCLG [now Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC)] Funding	Part of the Police Grant Report set by the Home Secretary	£3.4 billion
DfE	Pupil Premium	Funding to improve the attainment of disadvantaged pupils and pastoral support for children of service families.	£2.7 billion
DLUHC	Social Care Support Grant	Grant to support immediate pressures being experienced by authorities delivering social care	£2.3 billion
DLUHC	Improved Better Care Fund	The Better Care Fund (BCF) is a programme spanning both the NHS and local government which seeks to join-up health and care services	£2.0 billion
DLUHC	Deficit On Collection Annual Managed Expenditure	A scheme for the collection and redistribution of business rates to local authorities, promoting and rewarding local economic growth	£1.9 billion

5. General grants in financial year 2022 to 2023

General grants allow the government to secure policy objectives which the market cannot, such as innovation and research, and they allow an effective funding route for the voluntary and charitable sectors, for example to address homelessness and regional inequalities.

General grants account for 30% (£46.8 billion) of the value of government grants spending and 90% (1,532) of the volume of grant schemes in 2022 to 2023. This is a 17% decrease in the value from 2021 to 2022, when £56.3 billion was funded via general grants.

Source: Accompanying statistical tables – Table 1

The largest general grant funder in 2022 to 2023 was the BEIS which spent £23.0 billion on general grants. This includes the EBSS GB and the EBRS GB&NI, which account for a combined total of £17.1 billion. Outside of BEIS, the next largest general grant schemes are the DLUHC’s £1.0 billion Homes for Ukraine and the DfT’s £1.0 billion City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements (CRSTS). See table 2 below for details on these schemes, and the government grants register, accompanying this bulletin, for details of all grant schemes.

Table 2: The 10 largest general grants schemes

Department	Scheme Name	Purpose and objectives	Value
BEIS	Energy Bill Support Scheme (EBSS GB)	The Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS GB) provided a £400 non-repayable discount to eligible households between October 2022 to March 2023 to help with their energy bills.	£11.5 billion
BEIS	Energy Bill Relief Scheme Great Britain and Northern Ireland (EBRS GB&NI)	The Energy Bill Relief Schemes are established for Great Britain (GB) and Northern Ireland (NI) under the Energy Bill Relief Scheme Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022 / 1100) (EBRS GB Regulations), Energy Bill Relief Scheme (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1106) (EBRS NI Regulations) and the supporting Rules. The EBRS Schemes require licensed energy suppliers to provide a Discount on wholesale gas and electricity prices for all non-domestic Customers (including all UK businesses, the voluntary sector such as charities, and the public sector such as schools and hospitals) whose current gas and electricity prices have been significantly inflated in light of global energy prices.	£5.5 billion
DLUHC	Homes for Ukraine	A sponsorship scheme to provide safe housing and access to public funds for Ukrainians seeking refuge following the Russian invasion in February 2022.	£1.0 billion
DfT	City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements (CRSTS)	The CRSTS aims to create a more consolidated and devolved model of transport funding and delivering significant improvements for users. Originally called the Mayoral Combined Authority Funding.	£1.0 billion
BEIS	UKRI - Innovate UK	Innovate UK is the UK’s national innovation agency. We support business-led innovation in all sectors, technologies and UK regions. We help businesses grow through the development and commercialisation of new products, processes, and services, supported by an outstanding innovation ecosystem that is agile, inclusive, and easy to navigate.	£948 million
BEIS	UKRI - Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council	EPSRC creates knowledge in engineering and physical sciences for UK capability to benefit society and the economy.	£864 million
DWP	Household Support Fund Grant (HSFG)	The Household Support Fund has been made available to County Councils and Unitary Authorities in England to support those most in need to help with global inflationary challenges and the significantly rising cost of living.	£841 million
DfE	Priority School Building Programme - Private Finance Local Authority & Voluntary Aided School Revenue Grant	Revenue funding for private sector organisations as part of Public Private Partnership to maintain the condition of selected repaired schools.	£752 million
DLUHC	Strategic Deals 21-26	The Affordable Homes Programme 2021-2026 (AHP 2021-26) is a £7.4 billion investment programme providing grant funding to support the capital costs of developing affordable housing for rent or sale.	£714 million
DfE	Apprenticeships Participation 16 - 18	To fund the provision of apprenticeship training.	£689 million

5.1 General grant awards by allocation method in financial year 2022 to 2023

There are three means by which general grants are allocated to recipients:

• Competed - applications are invited and evaluated, with awards made based on the outcome of the application. In 2022 to 2023 these grants had a total value of £10.9 billion. Competed grant awards in 2022 to 2023 had an average (median) value of £45,000. As per the Grants Functional Standard, competition should be the default allocation method, wherever appropriate.

• Un-competed - grants are awarded to a single organisation or individual without a competition, for example where there is only a single organisation that has the capability of delivering the objectives. In 2022 to 2023 these grants had a total value of £7.8 billion. Un-competed grant awards in 2022 to 2023 had an average (median) value of £101,000.

• Criteria - disseminated based on specific qualifying criteria, for example grants to assist those affected by floods. In 2022 to 2023 these grants had a total value of £26.2 billion. Criteria grant awards in 2022 to 2023 had an average (median) value of £7,000.

Source: Accompanying statistical tables – Table 2

Note that these totals are calculated based on award level data, and average (median) values are calculated based only on awards to organisations. Therefore these totals do not add up to the other general grants totals in this report.

The proportion of criteria-based general awards increased from 25% in 2021 to 2022 to 58% in 2022 to 2023, this was driven by the introduction of the BEIS EBSS GB and the BEIS EBRS GB&NI (combined value of £17.1 billion). The proportion of uncompeted general awards decreased from 39% in 2021 to 2022 to 17% in 2022 to 2023. This was driven by the closure of the BEIS Nuclear Liabilities Fund, whereas the decrease of competed general awards from 36% in 2021 to 2022 to 24% in 2022 to 2023 was driven by the closure of the HMRC SEISS and CJRS.

6. Grant schemes by COFOG in financial year 2022 to 2023

We can classify grants by their area of economic activity using the Classification of the functions of government (COFOG). COFOG defines the broad objectives of government activity. The UK government classifies £77.7 billion of its grants spending as Education (see COFOG definitions for details on what areas of spending this category includes). General public services (£39.2 billion) is the second largest classification.

Source: Accompanying statistical tables – Table 3

7. Data Notes

Full notes for each data field are included in the scheme and award level data accompanying this report. Below are the key notes that users should be aware of when interpreting this data:

• The location recorded on the register is not necessarily reflective of the ultimate beneficiary of grant funding. The address may represent the head office of the initial recipient, rather than where the money is actually spent.
• Some data has been redacted at both scheme and award level in the published data, where there is a requirement by law and data protection regulations; where data has been redacted at award level but not scheme level, this will result in a difference between scheme-level and award-level data values.
• Grants-in-aid are excluded from this publication; grants-in-aid are funds allocated from one part of government to another part of government, for example, central government funding for the running costs of non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs).
• Financial figures can be reported on either a cash or accruals basis. We are working with departments to make this consistent for future publications.
• Some data is completely redacted for reasons of national security or commercial security. The statistics in this document and the accompanying statistical tables are calculated based on un-redacted data. This means that the statistics in this report won’t completely match the full published dataset.
• Some recipient information is redacted due to it containing personal information or for national security or commercial security reasons. These details are replaced with [Redacted] in the dataset.
• Average (median) award values only include awards going to organisations, excluding those going to individuals, and are rounded to the nearest thousand.
• Where central government provides grant funds to an organisation that then provides onwards grants to end recipients, only the grant to the initial organisation (e.g. the local authority) is included in this data.
• Central government departments are presented in the structure that existed in 2022 to 2023, and so this publication does not reflect the machinery of government changes that subsequently occurred in 2023 to 2024 which resulted in the creation of four new departments (the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the Department for Business and Trade as well as a re-focused Department for Culture, Media and Sport).

8. Departmental statements about the data in this report

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (Previously part of Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)

The BEIS data contained within the Government Grants Information System (GGIS), and therefore within this publication, is an approximation of the grant schemes run by BEIS.

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (Previously part of Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) has provided information for BEIS schemes that were inherited by the department following the Machinery of Government changes announced in February 2023. Partner organisations with grants listed on the Government Grants Information System (GGIS), such as UK Research and Innovation, were commissioned separately.

There were limits to the extent the data could be verified due to system changes as a result of the Machinery of Government restructure, and the creation of DSIT, which resulted in historic BEIS data being inaccessible. The DSIT team were able to confirm the data matched what was available on GGIS. This data would have been recorded at the time of the grant awards, by BEIS staff. There were additional checks undertaken on the data, to ensure any Personal Data was correctly redacted.

Data on our international research schemes is also published annually as part of the FCDO Statistics on International Development. These figures may differ due to differences in presentation by financial or calendar year and on an accrual or cash basis. Data for these schemes is based on DSIT 2022 assurance letters issued to its Partner Organisations covering the period 2023, 2024 and 2025. Since then, new assurance letters have been issued, covering 2023 and 2024, which override those budgets.

The Newton Fund and Global Challenges Research Fund spend data includes refunds that were received during the Financial Year. For some partner organisations the total value of their refunds exceeded their expenses, which is reflected as a negative total spend value.

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) schemes: Due to improvements in the methodology for reporting UKRI spend, we advise against comparing the figures for this year with those of previous years. UKRI spend data includes refunds that were received during the Financial Year, which is reflected as negative values.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

In the 2022 to 2023 dataset, there are some grants under DCMS that have a negative value. The negative values associated with grants made by Building Digital UK are due to over accruals in 2021 to 2022, creating a reversal and credit balance in 2022 to 2023. The negative values associated with grants made by the National Heritage Memorial Fund are due to over payments or grant increases in previous years, which then require a return of funds.

Department for Education

The Department for Education’s (DfE) 2022-23 GGIS data contains grant scheme and award expenditure for the departmental group (which includes its executive agencies) and the Office for Students (OfS), a non-departmental public body. It has been prepared on an expenditure basis, which is consistent with treatment in prior years.

The scheme and award data reported on GGIS represent 98% and 93% respectively of the department group’s total 2022-23 grant expenditure. Having been prepared on a resource expenditure basis, the total 2022-23 grant expenditure includes accounting adjustments (such as accruals) that are not relevant to the users of GGIS. This is alongside transactions that we have been unable to attribute to specific recipients, and where further investigation to achieve a 100% reporting completion rate (at both scheme and award level) was not proportionate on a value for money basis.

DfE’s grant award data consists of one line for each recipient of a grant scheme. Where a grant has been awarded to an academy, the details recorded in the recipient organisation field will be that of either the academy or its academy trust.

Where identified in the reporting process, the department’s return excludes grant-in-aid (to other government department’s) and funding to third party organisations through contracts.

Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs

The DEFRA data covers core Defra grants and those administered by its Arm’s Length Bodies. Where available data reported includes actual values, but in some instances budgeted values may have been reported instead.

Defra’s Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 includes grants funded by the EU, whereas the data published in the government grants register includes only Defra grants funded by the UK Exchequer.

Department for International Trade

The grant spend figure in DIT’s Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 includes grants funded by the EU Regional Development Fund. The data published in the government grants register includes only DIT grants funded by the UK Exchequer. The remaining discrepancy is accounted for by a multi-year grant being reflected in the Government Grants Information System in 2022-2023.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

The DLUHC data is on a cash payment basis for schemes and awards, which is consistent with prior years’ treatment, and therefore excludes accounting adjustments such as accruals.

Grants to local authorities include the Revenue Support Grant which finances revenue expenditure and capital grants which finance non-current assets. These are agreed through the local government finance settlement. In addition, specific grants are distributed outside the settlement.

Grant payments may need to be recovered from recipients for a variety of reasons depending on the grant conditions. Where recoveries are made income is recognised at the point that the invoice, or other notice requiring repayment, has been issued. The negative values relate to grant recoveries which net off with the overall scheme at programme level.

The Department’s budget at the 2022-23 Supplementary Estimate was £5.6 billion lower than in 2021-22. This was mainly due to a reduction in the budget for COVID-19 measures and the Council Tax Rebate scheme, which was partly offset by new funding for the creation of the Homes for Ukraine programme and an increase in business rates related budgets.

The Department delivered a Local Government Finance Settlement for 2023-24 that makes available up to £59.7 billion for local government in England, an increase in Core Spending Power of up to £5.1 billion or 9.4% in cash terms on 2022-23. This included £2 billion in additional grant for social care.

The Affordable Homes Programme provides grant funding to housing providers in England to support the costs of delivering affordable homes. The programme has iterations based on funding periods or policy changes including the Strategic Partnerships Grant Programme.

Business rates retention (top ups) are excluded from this publication as these are redistributed business rate grant payments funded through the collection of tariff amounts under the rate retention system and are not funded via the UK Exchequer.

The Authority Acts for Awards are automatically associated to the relevant Scheme Authority Act on GGIS and may not be individually verified. A Scheme may have more than one relevant Authority Act.

Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office

The data contained within this Government Grants Register shows a single year snapshot of FCDO grant spend as it is held on the Government Grant Information System (GGIS) at the point of publication.

The most accurate and up to date information on FCDO programmes can be found under FCDO transparency releases on gov.uk. All Overseas Development Assistance (ODA), including FCDO grant funding, is published to the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) standard on Development Tracker.

Home Office

Data contained within the Government Grants Information System (GGIS), and therefore within this publication, is reflective of the grant schemes run by HO.

The awards data covers grants to individual identifiable entities (companies, charities, universities) and other bodies. The data excludes non-grant award funding such as funding issued as contracts. Data also excludes Grant-in-Aid and details of any grant that is partially or wholly EU funded.

The figures represent either budgeted or actual expenditure, depending on the information provided up to the time of completion.

The core HO grants team is working with the Government Grants Management Function to improve data quality and completeness.

Some scheme details are not included in the publication report due to their sensitive nature or for reasons of national security.

Ministry of Defence

Defence - Armed Forces Day FY22/23 scheme – a variance exists between the Grant value and the total award spend. This was due to a lower number of applications being received in FY22/23.

Veterans’ Health & Well Being Fund scheme - a variance exists between the Grant value and the total award spend for FY22/23. The reason for this variance is that the awards made span two Financial Years - i.e. an amount paid in FY2022/23 and another payment made in FY2023/24.

Armed Forces Charities (Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust) scheme - a variance exists between the Grant value and the total award spend for FY2022/23, this is due to many awards spanning more than one Financial Year, i.e. starting in FY2022/23 but ending 2 or 3 years later.

1. unless unused or misspent ↩

2. a third party that is separate from the government organisation ↩

3. Calculated based on the Office for Budget Responsibility’s Public finances databank figure for total managed expenditure at the time of publication. ↩