Capital programme

What is included in our capital programme and how projects are funded.

Our Capital Programme helps deliver priorities, strategies and policies in the Westmorland and Furness Council Plan.

It supports how we deliver our services, and our vision to make our area the best place to live, work and thrive.

Capital Programme funding

The capital programme totals £0.5 billion over the next five years. More funding comes throughout the year. 

This year, the programme includes an extra £145m investment.

Government body grants fund a lot of the programme. These include grants from the following departments:

  • Transport
  • Levelling Up Housing and Communities
  • Education and Homes England

Grants are usually alongside direct or match funding through capital receipts or borrowing.

Key responsibilities of the Capital Programme

The annual programme delivers lots of major multi-million-pound long term projects.

These projects handle anything from new roads and buildings, to repairs and improvements. These often involve our own large portfolio of corporate property, like:

  • 69 separate primary and secondary schools
  • 10 care homes
  • 19 libraries

The Capital Programme Team monitors all capital spend in the authority. Other teams deliver programmes like:

See highlights of our capital programme work on our YouTube playlist.

Capital Programme policies and strategies

We have several policy documents underpinning our work. These support our plans for the future management of our buildings, including:

Award Achievements

Our capital programme is achieving national recognition for its strategies and major projects.

Winners

Our capital programme has won several awards, including:

  • ‘Local and Public Sector Net Zero Transformation Award’ - 2025 Green Energy Awards
  • ‘Net Zero Strategy of the Year’ - UK Green Business Awards
  • ‘Delivering Sustainable Growth award’ - Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning & Transport (ADEPT) Awards
  • ‘Green Building Project of the Year’ - UK Green Business Awards

Finalists

Our capital programme has been a finalist for several awards, including:

  • ‘Net Zero Award’ - Local Government Chronicle (LGC) Awards
  • ‘Renewable Energy Project of the Year’ – UK Green Business Awards
  • ‘Supporting Innovation Award’ - APSE Energy Awards
  • ‘Project of the Year - North West Regional Construction Awards
  • ‘Transport Project Award’ - British Construction and Infrastructure Awards
  • ‘Community Benefit Award’ - Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)
  • ‘Infrastructure Award’ – Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)
  • ‘Green Fleet Award’ – National Sustainability Awards
  • ‘Supply Chain initiative of the Year’ – National Sustainability Awards
  • ‘Transformation Award’ - National Sustainability Awards
  • ‘Building of the Year’ - National Sustainability Awards