Castilla y León grants 1.18 million to rural cultural projects

The Regional Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Sport of the Regional Government of Castilla y León has resolved the call for grants aimed at financing cultural projects in rural municipalities with fewer than 20,000 inhabitants, with a total amount of 1,179,325.08 euros. The decision is formalized in Order CYT/1049/2026, of October 8, published in the Official Gazette of Castilla y León (BOCYL) number 200, corresponding to Thursday, October 15, 2026, and bears the signature of the regional minister José Alberto Díaz Pico. The order exhausts all administrative remedies.

The call for these grants was approved by Order of May 22, 2026, an extract of which was published in BOCYL no. 99, of May 27. The regulatory framework is completed by the governing rules set by Order CYT/684/2024, of July 4, which establish the requirements for beneficiaries, eligible projects, and scoring criteria. Article twelve of the call assigns the authority to resolve to the regional minister of the department, who adopts the decision in accordance with the binding report of the Evaluation Commission.

The distribution is organized into three budget items and reaches local entities, companies, self-employed professionals, and non-profit organizations throughout the Community.

The selected projects

Annex I of the order lists the 43 entities and projects receiving funding, ordered by the score obtained, which ranges from 90 to 76 points. The maximum grant awarded is 35,000 euros. Among the beneficiaries are:

• City Council of Gordoncillo (León), with “Know, discover, recover. Mihacale 2026”, 90 points and 24,720.00 euros, the highest rated.
• Mancomunidad Encuentro de Caminos (Burgos), with “Living culture on the paths”, 88 points and 22,625.00 euros.
• City Council of Aguilar de Campoo (Palencia), with the “International Street Arts Meeting – 32 ARCA 2026”, 88 points and 28,573.00 euros.
• Sad Hill Cultural Association (Burgos), for the 60th anniversary of the filming of “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”, 87 points and 30,000.00 euros.
• City Council of Roa (Burgos), with “Roa de Duero: history, culture and art. Attached to the land”, 87 points and 35,000.00 euros.
• Las Edades del Hombre Foundation (Valladolid), with “The beauty of rural heritage”, 85 points and 21,900.00 euros.
• Silos Foundation (Burgos), with “Silos artistic residencies 2026”, 82 points and 35,000.00 euros.

The list also includes city councils such as those of Lerma, Cuéllar, Valle de Mena, Casavieja, Arapiles, San Pedro de Gaíllos, or Fresno de Cantespino, along with associations, foundations, and cultural companies such as Teatrópolis, S.L., Pandora Producciones Imagen y Eventos, S.L.U., Teatro del Azar, S.L., or Teselas Cultura y Turismo, S.L.

How the money is distributed

The total amount is distributed among three budgetary applications, depending on the nature of the beneficiary:

• Local entities of Castilla y León and dependent public bodies: 397,276.54 euros, charged to item 10.03.334A01.7600G.0.
• Private companies, self-employed professionals, and other for-profit entities: 392,695.54 euros, charged to item 10.03.334A01.7700Q.0.
• Foundations, associations, and other private non-profit entities: 389,353.00 euros, charged to item 10.03.334A01.78048.0.

Withdrawals and discarded applications

The order does not only grant aid: it also resolves the rest of the submitted files. In total, 179 applications were resolved.

• Annex II lists six applications that are considered withdrawn, four for failing to correct the required documentation and two due to the express withdrawal of the interested entity, including that of the City Council of Ciudad Rodrigo for its IX Medieval Fair.
• Annex III dismisses nearly 90 applications that met the requirements but were left out as the maximum amount of the call’s credit was exceeded; they are listed in order of their score, between 75 and 50 points.
• Annex IV rejects another 40 applications for specific reasons: not meeting the beneficiary requirements, including activities in municipalities with more than 20,000 inhabitants, not reaching the minimum 50 points, or presenting non-subsidizable activities.

Execution deadlines and means of appeal

The subsidized projects and their expenses must be executed between January 1 and December 31, 2026, both inclusive, according to the fifteenth article of the call. An optional appeal for reversal may be filed within one month before the Regional Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Sport, or a contentious-administrative appeal may be filed before the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the High Court of Justice of Castilla y León within two months. Both deadlines are calculated from the day following the publication in the BOCYL.

The resolution arrives with the fiscal year nearly closed and distributes slightly over one million euros among the cultural fabric of the rural environment. For small town councils, associations, and private promoters of “empty Spain,” these grants are often the only way to sustain festivals, artistic residencies, and heritage recovery programs in municipalities with fewer than 20,000 inhabitants.

Source: Official Gazette of Castilla y León, no. 200, October 15, 2026, I. Community of Castilla y León, C. Subsidies, p. 62 (official reference: BOCYL-D-15102026-200-16).