Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful: Rural Community Pollinator Grants Scheme

Overview

A Rural Community Pollinator Garden is a shared space with pollinating plants, habitats, wildflowers, flowers, shrubs and trees etc. on land in the ownership or leased by a community group or school. The garden must have elements that provide for pollinators, but the project does not have to be exclusively for this reason.

The garden should be inclusive and accessible and it should provide a healthy pit stop for pollinators and humans alike.

The scheme will also provide suitable infrastructure for people to enjoy the space including the provision of seats, picnic tables, paths and fencing.

The grants support new initiatives aimed at protecting and providing for pollinators.

Applicants such as communities, sports clubs and schools will be encouraged to increase pollinator-friendly land management techniques.

The Rural Community Pollinator Grants will support community groups and schools to:

• Increase the biodiversity value of an area by planting for pollinators.
• Transform unused spaces into valued community spaces, adding habitats and greening-up grey spaces.
• Create a positive legacy within a rural community.
• Improve the health and wellbeing of rural communities and aid biodiversity recovery by helping to improve and/or maintain the quality of community spaces.
• Increase civic pride through a programme of community engagement.
• Improve the quality of their local environment by changing behaviour to reduce the incidence of littering and dog fouling.

Eligibility

The project needs to be located in a rural area.

For the purposes of this Scheme, rural is defined as all those areas outside the statutory development limits of those towns with a population in excess of 5,000 inhabitants.

Please use the eligibility checker to see if your location has a population of fewer than 5000.

Who can apply?

• Volunteer, community groups and NGOs
• ‘Friends Of’ groups
• Non-constituted groups
• Schools and third level education organisations
• Youth groups, sports clubs, churches.
• Not for Profit Organisations managing community spaces

Note that collaborative applications between two or more of the above categories are highly encouraged.

The Rural Community Garden Pollinator Scheme is open to all groups including those which have previously received grants through Live Here Love Here.

What types of projects will the scheme cover?

Proposed projects must meet three or more of the following: objectives

(a) Enhance the environmental management and quality of a local area by planting a variety of plants for pollinators.

(b) Benefiting the wider community and environment.

(c) Increasing community access to biodiversity rich sites

(d) Creating a positive legacy within the community.

(e) Increasing civic pride through a programme of community engagement.

(f) Improve the health and wellbeing of communities and biodiversity whilst helping to improve and/or maintain community spaces

(g) Increasing the biodiversity value of an area by re-introducing native species.

Applicants should note that projects do not need to meet all the objectives but applications should strongly indicate all those that are being met and must meet at least three of the above listed objectives.

Applicants should also demonstrate:

(h) How they will maintain the areas planted in the 3 years following planting

(i)How volunteers will be engaged in the project

(j) The intended Rural Community Pollinator site on a site map

(k) The amount of funding requested for capital items is proportionate to the level of pollinating plants being planted.

(l) Their commitment to using peat free or reduced peat compost (where applicable).

Examples of eligible projects:

• Creation of native wildflower meadows / patches in community spaces and schools. ·
• Planting for pollinators in community spaces – wildflower seeds & plugs, shrubs, fruiting bushes, native trees & fruit trees, hedging.
• Infrastructure to improve access – new paths or upgrading current informal paths.
• Street furniture – benches, picnic tables, signs, fencing
• Tools for maintaining projects – community tool kit/hand tools
• Habitats – bird/bat/bug boxes
• Traditional land management skills; hedge laying / coppicing / stone walls
• Raised beds for improved access
• Green Roofs – on public/community buildings
• Outdoor classrooms – with suitable planting
• Removal of invasive species.

Workshops and/or training may be funded if it demonstrates that the project meets the Rural Community Pollinator objectives and will upskill and benefit the wider community.

Projects will be assessed in the following areas: meeting objectives; project goals; project need; community involvement; community benefit; long term impact; value for money and leverage; ability to adapt delivery based on Government guidance.

All items purchased through the Rural Community Pollinator scheme must benefit all members of the community and be stored in a communal facility.

Grant Value

Grants will be awarded between £3,000 and £12,000

Where possible, projects should be scalable in proportion to the amount of funding allocated.

Each applicant organisation can submit only one application with the exception that an applicant may also be named as a partner in a second collaborative bid.

Grants are available to cover 95% of costs.

Applicants should demonstrate their ability to fund the remaining 5%. Grants are paid on completion of the online project claim form and return of receipts. For some projects there is the possibility of paying 50% of total grant up front and this will be decided on a case by case basis.