BLACKHILLS WINDFARM COMMUNITY FUND CONTINUES TO SUPPORT OUR LOCAL COMMUNITY

Applications for grants from The Blackhill Windfarm Community Fund are due in in the next few weeks.  The next meeting of the Trustees is on 14th May 2015, and so applications should be submitted by 30th April.

Earlier this year the fund supported three local causes with grants totalling £13,500

£8,4944.49 was approved to support the work of converting the old Longformacus Kirk into the Longformacus and Lammermuir Heritage Centre.  This new centre will combine a number of functions including storing and displaying historical documents and artefacts, and hosting events and concerts.

A further £1,000 was gifted to The Scottish Air Ambulance, who provide an invaluable life saving service which is often called on across the Borders.  And Duns Football Club were awarded £4,000 towards their on-going project of improving the sporting facilities of the local area by constructing a covered viewing area for spectators.

The amount of money available for disbursement is affected by the weather over previous months and the size of the funds received by the Community Fund.  The windier the weather, the more electricity it produced, and the greater the funds.  The lovely summer weather of 2014 has therefore had a knock-on effect on the grants being made.

The fund is managed by a Board of Directors representing each Community Council and one Director from RES. We also have a number of Directors who do not represent Community Councils and we are currently looking to appoint another two Directors. If you would be interested in joining our Board of Directors please get in touch. 
The board of directors meet 4 times a year. Applications received are reviewed at the following quarterly meeting. Action from that meeting is then passed to applicants. Not only does our funding provide support but it also brings in other sources of financial support. Our aim is to always proactively fund projects that have a positive long term effect on our community. We welcome all applications for grant funding and application forms can be found on our website www.blackhillcommunityfund.co.uk. 
If you would like to find out more about the Blackhill Windfarm Community Fund Ltd you can either visit our website at www.blackhillcommunityfund.co.uk or contact our fund administrator Sharon Cleghorn on shz_conroy@yahoo.co.uk.