There are now a number of useful documents available on these ERDF webpages which will assist potential applicants in developing projects and ascertaining whether they are eligible for support.  There is also a series of ERDF guidance notes which we are building below to assist ERDF practitioners.

North East England ERDF Competitiveness Programme 2007-13

Glossary of terms and acronyms (ERDF user manual chapter 18)

National eligibility rules (ERDF user manual chapter 2)

To attract ERDF support, expenditure by projects must be eligible in terms of the Operational Programme, the relevant EC Regulations and the National Eligibility Rules.

Audits on previous programmes by the Commission and the European Court of Auditors have emphasised the need to strictly comply with eligibility rules. Failure to do so has led to financial penalties of up to a 100% of grant.

It is important to ensure therefore that the rules are strictly adhered to both during the project selection process and after approval. The full national eligibility rules are at Section 1 Annex A.  These are the national guidelines but may be subject to amendment and are not exhaustive.

Schedule of ERDF functions

ERDF 2007-13 GUIDANCE NOTES

n+2 spending target guidance note

De-commitment strategy guidance note

ERDF retrospection guidance note

Cross cutting themes guidance

ERDF/RDPE document retention guidance note

ERDF/RDPE external applicant evidence checklist