Successful Projects

Berwickshire Community Safety Panel

Year Completed: 
2013

WOOFs Campaign

The Grant provided by Blackhill Wind Farm has enabled us to purchase 400,000 bags for the WOOF’s campaign which will provide this service for up to a further 10 months.

I have also provided a brief description on how WOOF’s is impacting the local communities who have signatories.

The WOOF’s campaign is proving hugely successful and the impact into the communities is amazing.  There are presently 14 Community Council areas within the Berwickshire area who have signed their dogs up to this campaign.  This enables us to keep a track on the communities with dogs and try and ensure we keep the areas where the public have access to clean and free from fouling.

With the funding we have received from Blackhill Wind Farm we have ensured that the campaign has supplies for at least another 6 months.  This ensures that over 700 signatories with over 1000 dogs are making more of an effort to clean their pathways, parks etc and the message has been passed onto other dog owners as they enquire about the bags provided (which are very distinctive in colour).

Your generosity to the WOOF’s campaign has been amazing and given us a chance to order the bags needed to continue.  With this ability to continue we can keep the streets, paths, parks etc cleaner and the areas healthier for everyone to use.

Thank you for your support and generosity.

Regards

Kym Bannerman

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Duns Players

Year Completed: 
2013

The Duns Players applied to you for funding last year to finance some sound and lighting equipment and you kindly gave us.  We listed a number of items we wanted and agreed we would be contributing some of the money ourselves.   We also promised to share this equipment with other local groups.

To date we have spent £2,938 on much better lighting, carrying cases for all the equipment and a range of smaller items like the microphones.

Your grant has enabled us to improve the quality of our own shows.  We have put on Glen Garry Glen Ross an serious American Drama in September last year, Dads Army for armistice day. An Alan Bennett evening toured the village halls this spring and they will be used for our annual comedy shows this spring. 

We have also lent them to the Duns and District Opera for the annual pantomime and for Me and My Girl and Gavinton pantomime in January.  Berwickshire Housing Association borrowed them for their star awards event and they were also put to use a large childrens party.

We are thrilled with what we are now able to do with a much higher specification of equipment and not having to hire it on a regular basis so we want to thank the Fund for enabling this .

Yours Sincerely
Helen Forsyth Secretary Duns Players
 

Duns Senior Citizens Club

Year Completed: 
2013

Duns Senior Citizens Club holds its social meetings fortnightly in Turnbull Court. There is a syllabus for the session and we have talks, demonstrations etc., also outings and special lunches, all of which are very well attended.

We applied to the Blackhill Windfarm Community Fund for a Grant to help towards funding two of our events, and fortunately we were successful. Needless to say we were delighted. The Grant was very much appreciated, and it enabled members to have ‘that wee bit extra’ something on both these occasions.

  1. The Club’s Christmas Lunch -
    This was held on 13 December 2013, when delicious traditional fayre was provided by a local caterer and served by the Committee (volunteers). The Committee had made up some beautiful Christmas hampers from donations from our members, which were raffled. Then this was followed by entertainment from some Duns Primary School pupils and their teachers. As always the whole afternoon was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone, it brought both young and old together in fun and laughter.
  2. The Club’s Outing –
    This was held on 16 May 2014. Members were taken out for the day on a bus (local operator used), usually it’s to somewhere they can’t easily get to (as some of our members are not so mobile now). This year we went to Dobbie’s, Straiton and then back to Eyemouth Golf Club for our tea, delicious. There was ‘a right buzz throughout’, a change of scenery had given everyone a good lift, so we all went home feeling rather weary, but we all had had a lovely day.

On behalf of the Club, I would again convey our thanks to your Board of Directors, for their positive decision and generosity.

Madge Cran
Secretary
On behalf of May Kinghorn
Chairman

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Duns Football Club

Year Completed: 
2013

Duns Football Club

The generous grant Duns Football Club received from the Blackhill Windfarm Community Fund made up part of the overall funding package the club required for the ground works on our new playing surface at New Hawthorn Park in Duns.

It also helped erect our new perimeter fence which at that point completed stage one of our overall long term project.

Without this funding we would have been unable to complete on time. We opened our new ground last July on a sunny summers evening against a team from the reigning English champions Manchester City with the whole site looking splendid and over 500 people in the new ground.

So many people have, and will, benefit from what has been achieved with this generous grant and Duns Football Club would again like to thank Blackhill for their generous grant.

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Duns Amateur Swimming Club

Year Completed: 
2013

Duns Amateur Swimming Club

Despite its size Duns Amateur Swimming Club has a history of producing fabulous swimmers with famous names such as Dan Wallace starting their careers with us. Membership had dipped over the years and funds from the Wind Farm were vital in securing our survival in 2012/13 and allowing Berwickshire swimmers at all levels to continue to train and compete.

Since our application our membership has doubled and we have a strong coaching structure in place. Duns has become one of the top clubs in the Borders once again.  In 2014 five swimmers competed at the Scottish National Age Groups, 4 swimmers competed in the Scottish Open Junior Championships at Tollcross in Glasgow, with Toby Douglas winning silver. 

The Borders BEST team was one of the top 10 teams in Scotland this year qualifying for the Scottish National Team Championships.  Successful seniors give our junior swimmers aspiration and our coaches are giving senior swimmers a path to reach their potential. 

As a result our club is much stronger and we can offer more and more children in the Berwickshire area access to swimming and coaching of a great standard.  New members always welcome!

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