Five community projects awarded £44,000

MORE than £44,000 has been awarded to five community-based projects in the latest round of awards from the Marshes Community Benefit Fund.
The money comes from the annual £120,000 community payments made by Frodsham Windfarm Ltd and is allocated by the Marshes Community Benefit Fund panel.
The independent panel agreed to award £44,083 to the five projects which, in the opinion of the panel majority, best met the requirements and objectives of the Community Benefit Fund.
The successful applicants in this, the fifth round of awards, were:
* Elton Parish Council £1,694 for their Jubilee Field Project
* Rural Community Services £19,360 to provide OPAL Services in Helsby & Frodsham.
* Frodsham and District Photographic Society £2,266 for replacement of projector
* Frodsham community Red Lion Bowling Club £3,723 for replacement of bowling green mower
* Frodsham Community Association £17,040 for replacement disabled toilet facilities at the Community Centre
Panel chairman Dianne Walker said the panel members considered the successful projects were clearly defined with a demonstrated need, well thought out and of significant benefit to the residents in the areas surrounding the Frodsham Wind Farm.
As always, panel members would be monitoring the projects as they develop to ensure they meet the objectives and conditions set out in the signed award agreements.
Projects not awarded funding in this round have been notified and eligible schemes that were unsuccessful may reapply for future rounds.
Ms Walker commented that past projects have been completed on time and tangible benefits have already been felt in the respective  communities – photographs and reports on their progress will continue to be available to view on the Marshes Community Benefit Fund web-site, Twitter and Facebook accounts.
For details of the fund and information on the application process you can visit the FAQ page, applications for the next round of funds will re-open on June 1 and close on August 31.
Community groups, charities, schools, businesses and clubs may apply to the MCBF governing panel for grants of between £150 and £60,000 towards not-for-profit projects which are designed to benefit local communities