It’s just over two years since the turbines started turning at the Burbo Bank Extension offshore wind farm in Liverpool Bay and already its Community Fund has reached a major milestone seeing the 100th local project being awarded a grant.
The deserving groups have shared a total of £900,000 awarded through Ørsted’s Burbo Bank Extension Community Fund.
The latest round of funding awards saw local organisations around Liverpool Bay celebrating and thirteen new names were added to the list of those already supported, taking the total number of groups to have benefitted to 105 – surpassing the 100 milestone.
The full list of organisations awarded grants under this latest round of the Community Benefit Fund are as follows:
- 4th Crosby and District St. William of York Scouts, Litherland – £3,475
- Carrbridge Centre, Woodchurch, Wirral – £15,787
- Hoylake Parade Community Centre – £10,000
- North Denbighshire Domestic Abuse Service – £5,000
- Parenting 2000, Crosby – £11,859
- People First Merseyside Company Limited, Bootle – £13,863
- Prestatyn Area Business & Community Forum – £12,500
- Prestatyn Men’s Shed CIC – £1,500
- STAND North Wales CIC – £7,028
- The Benefit Advice Centre, Rhyl – £4,784
- Waterloo Quilters – £4,814
- Well On Wirral CIC – £5,000
- West Rhyl Young People’s Project – £20,539
On hearing the good news Chris Farley, 4th Crosby and District St. William of York Scout Leader said: “We have, in partnership with the Canal and River Trust, begun to redevelop a stretch of the Leeds to Liverpool Canal as part of our A Million Hands Project, which is a youth-led national initiative to engage young people in Community projects in their local area. Our ultimate aim is of it being used as a shared space for all, with the end goal of promoting mental health awareness in our Community and beyond. We are grateful to the Canal and River Trust for their support and would like to thank Ørsted for the funds granted to us through their Burbo Bank Extension Community Fund, all of which has helped in bringing our young Scouts’ vision to fruition.”
Imran Nawaz, Ørsted’s Stakeholder Advisor, said: “Having almost granted £1 million worth of funding to social and environmental projects in the locality, it’s great to see the positive impact that Ørsted is having across Liverpool Bay.
It’s extremely rewarding to have made a difference to over 100 deserving projects and we look forward to continuing our support within the area.”
The Fund is being managed by national grant-making charity GrantScape and more details can be found at GrantScape’s website www.grantscape.org.uk or by calling 01908 247634. The closing date for the next round of applications is 25 September 2019.
Each year for the expected 25 year lifetime of the Burbo Bank Extension offshore wind farm, approximately £225,000 will be made available for community projects, which will benefit the local area.
Ørsted’s Burbo Bank Extension offshore wind farm was officially opened in May 2017 and is capable of meeting the electricity demand of well over 230,000 homes. It was the first offshore wind farm in the world to commercially demonstrate the massive 8MW MHI Vestas turbines which stand at a staggering 195m, tall from sea-level to tip.