Over £150,000 to go to East Devon Commmunities
Communities around East Devon are about to see an extra cash injection after parish and town councils successfully bid for over £150,000 of fresh funding.
In total, £155,558 will be placed in the district’s ‘Parishes Together Fund’ after East Devon District Council and Devon County Council worked together to raise the sum equal to £1.10 per elector.
Projects including the Ottery Food Bank, the Cranbrook Community fund, the Axminster mental health organisation known as ‘The Project’ as well as several primary schools in the area are among the projects to benefit from the funding.
Councillor Ray Bloxham, EDDC Member and Chairman of the New Homes Bonus Panel which made the decision on the applications, said: “In this time of financial need this is an important fund that we have set up jointly with Devon County Council. It gives us the opportunity to start local projects and support initiatives that the community want.
“The EDDC Councillors who make the decisions are from several political allegiances and we all work together to consider the applications and make the decisions. I was very impressed with the high standard of the projects that had come forward as a result of towns and parishes working together for the benefit of their communities”.
The money will be used to fund a mix of long term commitments and one off purchases such as funding to buy a community bus to allow travel to the Budleigh health centre, formerly Budleigh community hospital and Exmouth Hospital.
Nearly £18,000 will be used to employ a hawking contractor to reduce the number of seagulls in Seaton Exmouth and Sidmouth.
Nearly £10,000 will also be spent to buy a full size screen and updated projector for Honiton Community Cinema so it can be an alternative to residents travelling to Exeter.
Funding for Cranbrook is also on the cards with £5,000 from last years pot, to improve community transport to heathcare facilities for disadvantaged, vulnerable and isolated parishioners living in Cranbrook and surrounding parishes.
£12,000 from last year’s pot will also be spent to refurbish the kitchen of the Younghayes Centre so it can be used for commercial hire and events, making the centre more sustainable.
Councillor John Hart, Leader of Devon County Council, said: “Devon County Council is continuing to make money available to communities to use how they see best.
“This money is available to Parish and Town Councils to spend in ways that will benefit their communities. I firmly believe decisions should be made as locally as possible to encourage local accountability and I have always advocated more partnership with our district, town and parish colleagues.
“If we believe in the ‘resilience’ of our smaller communities, then this is one way of pump-priming activity”.
The funding is available to town and parish councils working together and involving the community to help solve local issues. All applications must be submitted jointly from two or more parishes. The funding could be used for anything from permanent items to events, networks and one-off costs.
EDDC’s part of the funding has come from the New Homes Bonus, which is paid by the Government to EDDC for every new home built or brought back into use. DCC’s part of the funding has come from its main budgets.
some of this funding also comes from money left over from the fund in 2012/2013 as a top-up fund.
