National Park grant fund reopens

People with sustainable development projects in the Yorkshire Dales National Park are being invited to apply for a total of £160,000 in grants.

The Sustainable Development Fund (SDF), which closed temporarily because of the Coronavirus epidemic, will support projects which help to fulfil the two statutory purposes of the National Park Authority. 

In the twelve months to the end of April 2020, a total of £175,000 was allocated by the SDF to 36 worthy projects.  In the later part of the year, grants were given, for example, to a veg box business in Crosby Ravensworth in Eden for new equipment; to a cycling business in Hawes in Richmondshire for waterproof information leaflets; to Ingleborough Show Cave in Craven for wheelchair accessible picnic tables; and to a community group in Sedbergh in South Lakeland for a replacement shed at an allotment site.

The SDF pot of £160,000 for the year 2020/21 must be allocated by the end of next March.

Member Champion for Sustainable Development at the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, Chris Clark, said:  “The SDF is there to give a boost to local projects that will make the Yorkshire Dales National Park a better place to live, work or visit.  Across the National Park it’s a delight to see the difference support from the SDF is making.  In the sunny spring, for instance, people going through Garsdale will have seen builders re-roofing Garsdale Village Hall, a project which has received a grant of just over £5,000 from the SDF.

“The SDF could help local businesses to develop new ways of working, using the Park’s environment to promote green growth, or it could help local communities rebuild better after the Coronavirus ‘lockdown’.   The fund will support projects which conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife or cultural heritage of the National Park or those which promote opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of the area. If you have a project that needs a bit of support, please do not hesitate to get in touch.”