New biodiversity grants help residents support local ecology

Groups and organisations can now apply for a grant from the city council to fund projects that support biodiversity in the district.

The total pot available is £15,000, with bids welcome for amounts between £500 and £7,500. The grants can be used to fund the entirety of a project, or as match funding for a larger initiative.

Applicants are required to demonstrate that all the funding they are bidding for can be fully spent on their project by 31 March 2025.

Bids must be able to show that they will result in an improvement in local biodiversity and environment, and be fully costed.

They must also confirm how maintenance will be carried out for at least five years after completion, which may be achieved through volunteering.

Cabinet member for climate change and biodiversity, Cllr Mel Dawkins, said: “We are very pleased to be launching our new biodiversity grants and giving our residents the chance to bid for cash for projects that can make a real difference to the local environment.

“We’re fully open to all sorts of initiatives as long as they meet the criteria, but some examples of schemes we envisaged when planning this were wildflower planting areas, living walls, bat boxes and ponds.

“Showing the tangible difference you can make to local ecology is the key aim but creative ways to get the community involved will also be very welcome.

“Knowing how much passion there is in the district for supporting biodiversity and the environment, we hope to see lots of interest, resulting in some inevitably tough decisions on which bids to fund in due course.”

Applications must be submitted by Monday 9 December. Find out more information, the criteria for bids and apply.

Published: 11 November 2024