Up to £10mn National Lottery funding available for community climate & energy projects
Melanie May | 3 March 2023 | News
The National Lottery Community Fund is making up to £10 million available to community-driven projects across the UK that are focusing on the link between energy and climate.
The Climate Action Fund – Energy and Climate opened at midday yesterday, Thursday 2 March for applications and is expected to stay open until at least the end of the year. The fund is interested in supporting community-driven projects that will help communities make the most of opportunities that arise in the move towards more sustainable energy.
As such the fund is looking for projects that encourage communities to use energy in an environmentally friendly way, bring communities together so that they can explore ways to promote energy efficiency, and enable communities to understand and engage with opportunities for clean energy generation.
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Projects can apply for up to £1.5 million over 2 to 5 years, with a minimum grant £500,000. The aim is to fund 8-12 projects.
Nick Gardner, Head of Climate Action at The National Lottery Community Fund, said:
“Climate change matters to people and communities, so it matters to us. We are committed to supporting community-led climate action across the UK and, thanks to National Lottery players, can continue to step up our ambition, having allocated almost half of our £100 million commitment to projects through the Climate Action Fund.
“This new funding programme explores how community-driven energy projects can deliver environmental and societal benefits for people and communities across the UK. Communities are well-positioned to play a vital role in our response to the climate emergency, and engaging communities in conversations around energy locally can inspire action at scale and develop long term sustainable behaviours.”
Funding is also still open for projects that focus on the link between nature and climate. With its Climate Action Fund – Nature and Climate, the National Lottery Community Fund is looking for projects that can do at least one of the following:
- show how creating a deeper connection with nature will lead to changing people’s behaviours and greater care for the environment
- show how by bringing nature back into the places we live and work, we can help communities to reduce or adapt to the impacts of climate change
Since 2017, The National Lottery Community Fund has awarded more than £480 million through over 8,000 grants which involve environmental action, including action on waste and consumption, energy, transport, food and the natural environment.
Additionally, it expects to commit over £75 million to support communities on cost-of-living through the next year.
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.