On-line comment in response to this article: This is a reallocation of existing community funds, not new money. CWP already pay only half the Scottish Government recommended community benefit rate of £5k per megawatt installed! They are ripping you all off and you don’t see it. Compared to the mega millions they make out of their wind farms every year this is an absolute pittance; a joke. They should be ashamed of themselves.
A NEW £65,000 fund to support health and charitable organisations amid COVID-19 has been launched in Dalry.
The fund, from Community Windpower and the Dalry Parish Boundary Trust, is already being used to provide up to £1,000 of food for North Ayrshire Foodbank every week and £10,000 of essential equipment to medical centres through North Ayrshire Council’s Health and Social Care Partnership.
The financial support in North Ayrshire through the new COVID-19 fund, will see money diverted from Millour Hill Community Wind Farms’ community benefit funds, via the Dalry Parish Boundary Trust, and directly from Community Windpower itself.
It’s part of Community Windpower reallocation of £235,000 of financial support across the areas around its seven operational wind farms across Scotland, and it is looking to increase this in the coming weeks.
Cllr Robert Barr, chairperson at the Dalry Parish Boundary Trust, said: “With the monies received from Community Windpower over the last five years we have distributed funds of approximately £80,000 per annum to all age groups and other activities in the area for example Dalry Scouts and Dalry Guides.
“With the recent virus outbreak we agreed with the parent company to ring fence £65,000 to assist groups that are assisting the general public in any way during this unprecedented crisis.
“I would like to thank the management team from Community Windpower for their assistance with us in setting this up.”
Diane Wood, community benefits director at Community Windpower, said: “Our support to the local communities began a few weeks ago, but we quickly realised from speaking to organisations that wider help was urgently required.
“That’s why we have now created this official fund in North Ayrshire, alongside financial support to organisations we have ongoing partnerships with.
“We’ve done this to ensure the money we provide reaches those who need it most.”
In North Ayrshire the fund is being run by the Dalry Parish Boundary Trust, which manages the community benefit fund from both the Millour Hill Community Wind Farms, with individual applications of up to £2,500 accepted, although subject to review and will depend on each case.
2 Comments
Alex McKenzie · June 22, 2021 at 5:54 am
How do you apply for funding to help upgrade the toilets at Dalry Bowling Club
SAS Volunteer · June 22, 2021 at 7:34 am
Alex, you need to contact the Council to find out how to apply for funding from the wind farm. All local authority areas are different. In some you have to approach the developer directly, in others, community councils make the decision on who is eligible for grants and in a few, the money is controlled by the council and disbursed through a committee of councillors and community councillors. I’m afraid I don’t know what happens in North Ayrshire.