Drone Hill Community Fund supports community resilience

Greencoat Drone Hill Community Fund Panel has distributed £20,000 to four community councils to support local activities alleviating the effects of the coronavirus situation on residents.

The community councils of Coldingham, Reston & Auchencrow, Cockburnspath & Cove and Grantshouse are co-ordinating a range of voluntary community activities helping local residents cope with the effects of lockdown. Each will administer a £5,000 ‘microgrants’ fund, to support things like food bank arrangements, distributing essentials, transporting prescriptions and medicines, tackling hardship and supporting vulnerable residents. Details of the schemes will be posted on local noticeboards, on social media and community websites.

Here in the Reston & Auchencrow area we have hand-delivered both Easter Eggs and an Easter Card to all residents.  The card was to make all the residents aware of the help that is available, with information on the card about how to contact the community council Resilient Group.  We’ve had some great responses from residents.  One told us ‘Thank you very much for our Easter eggs.  They were a lovely surprise and a great way of keeping in touch’ as well as ‘Thanks so very much for the surprise Easter egg and card, it really means a lot knowing that you are out there and being caring and thoughtful.’  A number of residents have also responded with offers of help.

 

A spokesperson for Reston and Auchencrow Community Council

The Drone Hill Community Fund Advisory Panel, made up of local residents, has an intimate knowledge of what’s happening in the area and so was able to make informed and rapid decisions on how best to deploy the funds to support community activity in response to the virus. We at Foundation Scotland have worked closely with the community councils to develop the microgrants approach, and offer some insights from experiences with other similar Community Funds elsewhere in Scotland, reassuring the Panel that they could award Funds rapidly and with confidence

 

Malcolm Jack, Community Funds Manager from Foundation Scotland

The Panel in partnership with Foundation Scotland will continue to monitor the situation and consider how the Fund can support local community groups during and after the pandemic. Regular Drone Hill Community Fund grant application rounds are likely to continue, with details posted on Foundation Scotland’s website