Capital Funding 2025-26

The OfS is running a bidding competition for capital funding for the financial year 2025-26 (April 2025 to March 2026).  

This bidding competition is open to all eligible higher education providers (those registered with us in the Approved (fee cap) category). 

Our aim through this competition is to enhance the learning experience of higher education students at providers, 

Each eligible provider may submit only one bid. We will not consider multiple bids from a provider, or bids received after the application deadline of 30 July 2025.  

Providers are allowed to submit a bid covering multiple strands of work or a set of smaller activities that contain items of appropriate capital expenditure which meet the criteria.   

A provider may bid for capital funding to be spent at any time within financial year 2025-26. However, all OfS funds must be spent and cleared in full by 31 March 2026 – committed funds will not be permitted.  

Ideally, providers will use this funding to deliver new projects and activities. However, given the timeframe for this process, providers can submit a bid for funding for a project that is already underway but not yet complete. We will assess bids with a view to maximising the value for money offered by the portfolio of projects as a whole and the additional capacity to be delivered. Where providers are submitting a bid for a project already in progress, they should clearly set out the additional benefits that will be delivered from OfS funding. This could mean, for example, that high quality enhancements and improvements could be made to capital works which would otherwise not be achievable, or that the project could be completed more quickly and free up funding for other investment. We will also need to consider carefully any proposals which seek funding linked to projects and activities we have supported in previous years, and whether there is sufficient additionality on offer for us to provide new investment this year.  

A bid can be submitted for expenditure that has been committed prior to submission if:  

It is for an eligible project that meets the criteria, and  

the money is spent in full within the financial year 2025-26, from April 2025 to March 2026.  

We will actively monitor spend and progress, to manage the risk of any underspends accumulating towards the end of the funding period. In exceptional circumstances, if our monitoring does not give us confidence that a provider will be able to use the funding in the time available, in line with the terms and conditions that apply, we may withdraw the offer of funding in whole or part. Such exceptional circumstances may include significant delays in delivery (for whatever reason) compared to the timetable set out in the provider’s bid (or as may subsequently be agreed by us) or failure of the provider to engage to our satisfaction in reporting and monitoring requirements. 

As this is a one-year scheme, it is essential that bids are accurate and the activities and capital works are viable and can be delivered as set out to us. Bids should demonstrate that:  

There is a need for the proposal  

that the provider has realistic delivery plans in place, and,  

that the provider is ready for the funding sought.  

Bids must have a focus on one or more of the priority areas for investment set out in the guidance, but with this in mind we are interested to support: 

New capital projects which are ready for our investment and will more quickly deliver impacts and benefits for students, as well as provide excellent value for money.  

Refurbishment of, expansion of or adaptations to existing teaching facilities – to deliver improvements to infrastructure to sustain current provision and/or deliver growth.  

Critical investment to support the long-term viability and sustainability of a provider’s facilities – essential projects at providers which cannot be resourced by other means. 

Upgrading of or buying new specialist equipment.  

A provider must ensure its bid reflects its strategic priorities and has the support of its senior management team and governing body. In previous competitions we have received proposals from individual members of staff, which lacked the strategic support required.