About ERDF

The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) programme allocates funding to different regions throughout the European Union to boost economic development in less prosperous areas.

In the UK, the Government has given its nine Regional Development Agencies responsibility for managing the funding, which means that European Union regional policy can be aligned with UK domestic regional policy.

In the Northwest, the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) is responsible for managing the ERDF programme. The NWDA has been allocated €755 million from the ERDF to spend on the Northwest between 2007 and 2013.

• The ERDF programme in the Northwest is known as the Northwest Operational Programme (NWOP).
• The Northwest Operational Programme has four Priority Areas for funding.

ERDF Background

The ERDF was set up in 1975. The ERDF is one of two European Union Structural Funds; the other is the European Social Fund (ESF), which in the Northwest is delivered by Job Centre Plus, the Learning & Skills Council, and the Government Office for the North West.