Community buildings

Community buildings can cater for a wide range of purposes, from pre-school playgroups to Internet surfing sessions for the elderly. Community building and village hall committees usually seek capital funding for buildings, refurbishment or purchase of equipment.

East Devon District Council and the Community Council of Devon currently have funding for village halls, community buildings, community shops and community pubs. This funding is to help improve, refurbish or even build these facilities. There must be match funding available of at least twice the amount of the grant. EDDC will only fund projects in villages and rural areas, CCD will fund projects in towns or in rural areas. The maximum grant from EDDC is £5,000 and the maximum grant from the Community Council of Devon is £20,000. You only need to fill in one application form to apply for both. The closing dates are 31 July and 31 January. To find out more: www.devonrcc.org.uk/c/37/county-grant-scheme-for-community-buildings or phone Cara or David on 01392 248919.

Community Matters
This is a national membership organisation supporting community associations, mainly community buildings. Any community group can get free advice, including advice on funding, from their telephone advice line on weekday mornings at 0845 8474253, and members get extra support services. For more information: www.communitymatters.org.uk

Devon Village Halls
The Community Council of Devon has set up a separate website for, and about, village halls and community buildings in Devon. It can help you advertise and promote your village hall, and also provides advice and support to village halls on funding. For more information: www.devonvillagehalls.co.uk

Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA)
DEFRA has identified funding from several sources, such as the government, the Lottery, local and regional sources and grantmaking trusts. For more information phone 08459 335577.

Action with Communities in Rural England (Acre)
Several different funders may fund the provision of village halls. Action with Communities in Rural England (Acre) has some useful information.  See: www.acre.org.uk

Community Shops
The Plunkett Foundation has advice, and sometimes funding, available to communities who wish to open up their own community shop. For more information: http://www.plunkett.co.uk/whatwedo/rcs/ruralcommunityshops.cfm or phone 01993 810730.

USEFUL GENERAL FUNDING

Awards for All, England
Awards for All is funded by the Big Lottery Fund and makes grants of  £300 - £10,000 for people to take part in community activities. You may find Awards for All is a helpful starting point in your quest for funding, particularly for small-scale, community based projects based around increasing participation and accessibility. You can find out more at:  http://www.awardsforall.org.uk/index.html  or phone 08454 102030.

Local money
Some Town and Parish Councils have funding available for local community projects in their areas. Contact your local Parish or Town Clerk to see if this is available for you. To find out how to contact them go to: www.eastdevon.gov.uk/parish_and_town_councils

HISTORIC COMMUNITY BUILDINGS

Historic buildings
The Architectural Heritage Fund has grants available to registered charities to regenerate historic buildings to create community and education facilities, workspaces and homes. For more information:http://www.ahfund.org.uk/ or phone 02079 250199.

Funds for Historic Buildings
If your community building is a historic one, you may like to search The Funds for Historic Buildings database. This is a comprehensive guide to funding for anyone seeking to repair, restore or convert for a new use any historic building in England and Wales. You can find more details at: www.ffhb.org.uk

Local built environment
The David Knightly Trust has grants available for voluntary groups undertaking creative practical projects to enhance, conserve or restore the quality of the local built environment for the benefit of the whole community. Grants are usually between £500 and £5,000. For more information phone 01264 738268 or e-mail gillbinks@tesco.net

ENERGY EFFICIENCY OF COMMUNITY BUILDINGS

Energy efficiency and environmental impact will be important when applying for funding to renew heating or other power systems in a community building or when replacing or building a community building. They could also help save money on your community buildings energy bills. The following people (among others) can help:

National Energy Action promotes energy efficiency and has produced a free 31 page booklet for community buildings on how to be more energy efficient, and grants available to help you do this. For more information: www.nea.org.uk or phone 01912 615677.

  • DARE (Devon Association of Renewable Energy) www.devondare.org or phone 01837 89200
  • Envision provide energy audit for community buildings www.envisionsw.org.uk or phone 08454 569350
  • Energy Advice Centre, phone 0800 512012

FURTHER ADVICE AND ASSISTANCE
If you need further assistance or advice, please contact: Jamie Buckley, Engagement and Funding Officer, East Devon District Council, Tel no: 01395 517569  email: jbuckley@eastdevon.gov.uk

Page last updated on 26 April 2012