Dorenell Fund Delivering Community Priorities
EDF Renewables Dorenell Wind Farm Community Benefit Fund has two reasons to celebrate, with a new round of funding just announced and a major review of the fund itself, in a report just published.
The report reviewed the number and impact of funding awards to date, and also considered the community priorities for the fund going forward.
In the first three years of grant making since the launch of the fund in 2020, a total of £1,273,764 was awarded to 61 projects throughout the fund areas of Dufftown, Auchindoun, Glenrinnes, Glenlivet, Inveravon, and Cabrach. A further £57,964 was paid to the local Community Associations to fund smaller ‘microgrants’.
All of the projects supported by the fund align with the community priorities, which are included in the Community Development Plan produced in 2018, in the set-up stage of the fund. Five key themes were identified as local priorities as well as a number of suggested projects.
The themes were: environment and heritage; community facilities and activities; local economy; housing; and access to services.
Of these, the theme of community facilities was the most heavily supported in the first years of the fund, with 44% spent on community buildings and equipment and a further 18% on groups and activities. 85% of all awards (by value) related to projects outlined in the Community Development Plan, and all projects related to at least one of the priority themes. This shows that the fund is directly addressing community issues and needs across the fund area.
The evaluation process also involved a community consultation to review the local priorities and projects identified in the original Community Development Plan, and this has informed a new, updated plan to reflect current views and needs, while broadly maintaining the wider themes.
One of the main changes that has been made as a result of the fund review is that groups can now apply for more than the current maximum award of £30,000 if the application is for strategic projects or for staff posts.
Strategic projects are those that are large scale and multi-year, and that are designed to bring about transformational change in the fund area, in line with the priorities in the Community Action Plan.
Capacity for emergency funding awards has also been put in place, so that the panel can make awards outside the normal grant cycle in the event of unexpected occurrences that severely impact local communities.
The fund is also celebrating its latest round of awards, with four community project grants being made.
One of these was to the Glenrinnes Community Centre, who received £48,930 for a range of projects. These include marquee hire for a Memories Day event, replacing the fence around the hall, purchasing a range of catering equipment and funding a feasibility study on options to upgrade the Community Centre to improve energy efficiency and facilities, which will create a more sustainable and functional community space.
Another award of £15,000 was made to Keith and Dufftown Railway Association, to support the cost of extending the engineering shed to increase capacity for volunteering, and expand the scale of the operation to grow the heritage train service locally.
The Dorenell Wind Farm Community Fund is provided by EDF Renewables UK.
EDF Renewables UK, Director of Asset Operations, Piero Maggio said:
It's wonderful to see the Community Development Plan has helped steer our funds to address very local issues and enhance the local community. Congratulations to all involved.
Projects that benefit the communities of Dufftown, Auchindoun, Glenrinnes, Glenlivet, Inveravon or Cabrach can still apply for funding of up to £30,000 for projects and activities that are charitable in nature, community-led and that will benefit local residents. Grant awards are recommended by a panel of representatives drawn from those communities.
The deadlines for the Dorenell Wind Farm Community Fund year ahead are 31st July and 30th November.
Dorenell also provides funding for microgrant schemes which are run by each of the community associations involved in setting up and running the Fund: Cabrach Community Association; Dufftown & District Community Association; Glenlivet & Inveravon Community Association and Glenrinnes Community Centre.
These microgrants allow smaller groups to apply for up to £1,000 for events, activities, equipment and projects. More information is available from local community associations.
Full details on the Dorenell Wind Farm Community Fund are available on the fund page.
You can read the Dorenell Fund Strategy review here
You can read the Fund's Updated Priorities here