In July 2019, Bury Council declared a Climate Emergency in response to acknowledging that humanity is living in a climate crisis. Since then, the Council has produced a Climate Action Strategy and Action Plan, which includes steps to take to mitigate against climate change. One of the themes of the strategy is to help empower our community to take their own Climate Action. As a result of this, the Council set up a one-off Community Climate Action Fund. A fund of £100k was identified and applications were invited from community groups who could demonstrate projects that aligned with the Council’s climate goals.
See the end of this page for more background information about the fund.
Funding was awarded to 12 community groups to fund their climate action related projects. Award winners included environmental forums, voluntary groups, and social enterprises.
About the successful projects
Creative Living Centre
The Enterpise Centre
Friends of Clarence Park
The Sunnywood Project
Friends of Chesham Woods
Prestwich Environmental Forum
Greenmount Primary School Parent Association
Phillips Park Management
Whitefield Environmental Forum
Lancashire Wildlife Trust
A summary of what the fund has achieved
Given the results demonstrated above by each of our fund winners, it is clear that the Community Climate Action fund has been a success. A wide range of projects have been enabled due to the fund, and many are seeking further funding to ensure the projects continue. Some organisations have already secured further funds to either continue their projects or start another project that will focus on a different area of climate action.
These projects have produced a wide variety of positive results such as the following.
- Greater awareness of recycling benefits, with a projected increase in households that recycle over the next 5 years.
- Engaging local people in conversations around positive local solutions
- Educated and informed communities and given citizens a voice.
- Reduction of food waste
- Increase in biodiversity
- Visual enhancements of green spaces
- Active promotion of FairTrade and green products
- Promotion of cycling and active travel
- Increase in participation in gardening groups.
- Reduction in textile waste and increase in availability of reused uniform at discounted prices.
- Removal of invasive species in our green spaces
- Generation of healthy community environments
- Improved relationships between community and stakeholders
- Raised awareness of facilities available to public groups, resulting in increased participation of activities on the grounds
- Reduction of single use plastics, resulting in cleaner communities and promotion of healthier lifestyles
- Increased interest in solar panels and renewable energy sources
- Opportunity for further climate action events, such as litter-picking, Balsam bashing and building bat/bird boxes.
- A greater awareness of Bury’s 2038 carbon neutrality target
As most of the projects are set to continue long-term, it is hard to assess the immediate impacts on the climate, but it is exciting to think of the long-lasting effects that the people of Bury may see.
Many of these projects would not have been possible or be so wide reaching had this fund not been available. External funds can have more rigorous criteria and a wider pool of applicants, making it harder for our local groups to access them. Having a localised fund that was exclusively for the residents and communities of Bury meant that many groups felt that they could apply, and that they had a relatively good chance of being successful. It also allowed for a wider range of projects to be proposed, as national and external funds tend to be specific to certain aspects of climate action.
The Council had a large range of applications for the fund, 18 overall including the 12 that were awarded. Additionally, we have had other groups reach out to the Climate Action Team asking for funding for other climate action projects. This is a testament to the fund’s impact and demonstrates what is possible when community groups are aided to take their own action. Furthermore, this fund has shown the importance of collaborative work with the community and the Council. Separately the Council and the community can only do so much but working together can achieve a lot more and have a wider reach across the borough.
The fund has opened a channel of communication that enables the community to have their voices heard by their local authority, with many of our fund winners now sitting on the Council’s Climate Action Board. Should further funding be made available this would help to strengthen and grow community climate action and the relationship between the Council and its community groups.