Portnahaven, Islay

Crown Estate Scotland awards £150k to community projects across Scotland

11 June 2021

Seven projects based across Scotland will benefit from a total of £150k from a new Crown Estate Scotland fund designed to support community enterprises.

The Community Capacity Grants are part of the Crown Estate Scotland’s new £750k Sustainable Communities Fund. A total of £250,000 has been awarded in the fund’s first year of operation - £150k for community enterprises and £100k for tenants undertaking environment projects.

Successful Community Capacity projects include:

  • £40,000 for the development of a local energy plan on Islay
  • £25,000 in Moray and £18,000 in Argyll & Bute for work to address local housing needs
  • £25,000 in Argyll & Bute to provide a Development Officer, working on community childcare facilities
  • £18,000 in Moray to support the development of a Campsite
  • £16,000 in Highland to support the growth and regeneration of a crofting township
  • £12,000 in Fife to support a town centre regeneration project

Community capacity grants are open to all communities, up to five miles from Scotland’s coastline or within five miles of Crown Estate Scotland’s four rural estates, which are planning community enterprise projects that contribute to local regeneration and sustainable development.

Annie Breaden, Head of Policy for Crown Estate Scotland, said: “After the pressure on communities over the last year, it’s great to be supporting such a worthwhile and positive group of projects.

“These are initiatives which can potentially make a big difference for the communities driving them, and I’m excited to see how they progress.

“We received lots of great applications from all across Scotland, and I’m hopeful that we’ll see a similar level of interest when applications open again later in the year.”

The second round of the Sustainable Communities Fund will launch in Summer 2021.

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