Fenland projects win Cambridgeshire County Council funding totalling over £70,000
Two Fenland community projects have netted a total of £70,000 worth of funding from Cambridgeshire County Council to help enhance their facilities.
Cambridgeshire's communities and partnership committee approved recommendations from a members' panel to give grants to both Estover Park in March and the Tower Hall in Friday Bridge.
A report to today's (Wednesday) committee meeting outlined both bids.
It said Estover Park, which is run by a community interest company, is looking to enhance the newly built sports pavilion and other facilities with new fencing, pathways, a patio, café and kitchen
The report said: "This will provide the venue with modern facilities and increase community use for both sports and leisure. £6,000 funding has been raised and a further £35,000 is requested."
Tower Hall is looking to upgrade the facilities at its venue, which have become outdated and have in some instances deterred community bookings, said the report.
It continued: "The members' panel noted that this is a small community with limited services within the village and therefore relies upon the hall for community functions. Match funding of £3,000 is in place, with a further £3,000 expected from the parish council. "Exact costs are not yet known due to the difficulty of getting contractors to visit during social distancing restrictions. It is therefore recommended that a maximum of £36,000 is allocated, but this is subject to the applicant providing a written quotation and confirmation of planning permission (not yet in place)."
The report explained the panel, which consisted of Councillors Mark Goldsack, Lis Every, Adela Costello and Henry Batchelor met on April 28 to consider a number of applications each seeking £50,000 or less.
The panel had to consider how each of the projects met the funding criteria set by the council and make recommendations.
It recommended five projects be given the requested funding, the other three were: Sawtry skatepark - £18,000; Somersham outdoor play equipment - £32,560; and enhancements to Overcote, Over - £25,597.
The money will come from the council's communities capital fund which was launched on April 1 2020, and sets aside up to £5m to help support projects across the county that seek to improve health, wellbeing, social and economic opportunities in our communities. The fund may contribute up to £500,000 capital funding per project.