The Community Ownership Fund requires applicants to meet a set of mandatory eligibility criteria designed to ensure value for money and that applications are from appropriate organisations. Applicants must be able to raise at least 50% of the funding required to purchase and/or renovate the asset. This is a common requirement in grant programmes and ensures that public funding leverages additional investment, strengthening the community’s commitment to making the asset a success. Applicants are signposted to further support in the prospectus including through the My Community website and the Power to Change and Architectural Heritage Fund websites. The Fund is administered by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and has recently completed the first bidding round (Round 1 Window 2) which closed on 10 December. Over 70 applications were received from across the UK. Out of the 45 applications for which decisions have now been made (covering both Round 1 Window 1 and 2), 22 have been supported. The remaining 23 were either rejected or withdrawn by the applicant due to not meeting the mandatory eligibility requirements. DLUHC is reviewing the prospectus to clarify the eligibility criteria for future rounds based on feedback from round 1. In addition, DLUHC has commissioned an external evaluation of the Community Ownership Fund to ensure that it delivers effectively, and to capture lessons learned. The evaluation began in December 2021.