A helping hand is on the way for environmentally friendly projects across Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham.
Every year the Renewi Corporate Social Responsibility Fund supports ‘green’ and healthy eating community schemes surrounding their award-winning waste treatment facility at Manvers.
Applications are now invited for 2021 and need to be submitted by Monday, 30th November.
Eligible projects can apply for up to £3,000 a year if they are within or benefit communities 3.5km (as the crow flies) of the Manvers facility, and up to £1,000 a year if they are further away but still within Barnsley, Doncaster or Rotherham council areas.
They can apply for 90 per cent funding if they can provide the other 10 per cent, and in addition groups can apply for volunteer time to support their projects up to a maximum of 30 hours, with groups providing equal volunteer hours wherever possible.
This year £3,000 was awarded to Restoration Beyond Belief, a school uniform re-use project which each year helps over 300 Dearne Valley families who are struggling to provide school uniforms for their children.
Goldthorpe Salvation Army in Barnsley received £1,000 for their Victory Programme, a six-week educational initiative encouraging participants to embrace war-time budgeting skills, prepare healthy meals and make their money and food go further.
Little Einstein’s Day Nursery in Doncaster was awarded £1,000 to build a sensory garden and safe environmental education space.
And St Ann’s Junior and Infant School in Rotherham received £1,000 to create a reading and creativity garden for outdoor learning with access to books, writing and drawing materials.
Joint Head of St Ann’s, Lee Rowan, said: “Many of our pupils don’t have access to safe outdoor space and this funding will be used to create a calming outdoor learning haven with access to books, writing and drawing materials surrounded by nature. Parents will be able to come and listen to their children read and children can come to reflect, practise mindfulness and just enjoy the outdoor environment.”
Examples of other types of projects that could be eligible for funding include grow, cook and eat sessions where skills are developed to create less waste, funding for walking bus equipment and the creation of community orchards.
Renewi Community Education Liaison Officer Abi Cox said: “We aim to be a good neighbour and make a positive contribution to the local community in the Dearne Valley. In addition to making more from waste, we want to support the communities we serve more broadly and contribute to making them healthier and happier places to live.
“This year in view of the unusual challenges faced by all we have extended the criteria to include help for projects which aid recovery after Covid, for example funding or materials to make masks and scrubs, or for food bank projects which benefit the community.”
More information and application forms are available on the BDR Waste Partnership website and applications should be in by Monday 30 November. Successful projects will be notified shortly after.