Sea-Changers: Coastal Fountain Fund
Overview
Purpose of the Fund
The purpose of the fund is to reduce the impact of single-use plastic water bottles on coastal habitats by funding communities to purchase water drinking fountains and install them for use by the public in busy or environmentally important areas.
The Sea-Changers Coastal Fountain Fund is supported by Bunzl plc.
Who and what will they fund?
The Sea-Changers Coastal Fountain Fund is available for applicants from UK based community organisations. They welcome applications from a wide variety of groups and entities. They expect to be providing partial funding for water fountain installation projects where other funds are also being sought or are already in place.
Applicants should have identified a need and be well-placed to get the stakeholder involvement needed to make the project a success. They particularly welcome applications from Wales, Scotland, East Anglia and Northeast and Northwest England as these areas have been under-represented in previous years.
What is this fund for?
Bids must be for funding of water fountain bottle filling stations at or near UK beaches/marinas/coastal locations.
Their funding will only cover the cost of purchasing the water fountain unit up to £2,500 and does not cover installation or maintenance costs.
The fund will only cover the purchase of one fountain per successful applicant.
Evaluation Criteria
- Need and impact - There must be a clear need and impact. You need to show the proposed fountain will be placed in an area which either:
- Has significant public use/a lot of littering or
- Is of particular environmental importance or status.
So they can measure impact, they will require successful applicants to provide usage data of the amount of water drawn (via a water meter) and thereby the potential number of single-use plastic bottles saved.
- Viability to be operational within 2025
You will also need to show you know who to involve and have plans in place to involve all necessary stakeholders and obtain the appropriate permissions to implement the installation (e.g. landowners, water companies, local planning authority, local community).
- Sustainability – Applicants must show that they have in place the means and funding (beyond the funds applied for) to ensure the fountain will be properly maintained for at least the following 2 years and that the necessary stakeholders involved in maintenance have been consulted.
- Value for money - The maximum amount available to purchase your fountain is £2,500. This amount does not include installation and ongoing maintenance costs which applicants must identify and demonstrate to us are available. You need to be able to demonstrate you can fully fund fountain maintenance for at least 2 years post-installation (see also Sustainability).
Other important considerations
- They expect bidders to make use of Refill’s existing good practice guidance in developing their plans. https://refill.org.uk/drinking-water-fountains/ This covers all practical aspects of getting a fountain installed.
- Installed fountains must be mapped on the Refill app.
- In line with advice from Refill, they expect the fountain unit to be WRAS Certified. Their current recommended providers are MIW, Waterlogic, and Our Only World as they offer fountains that can best withstand outdoor coastal locations.
- So that fountains can be installed in a timely manner, they expect all applicants to have already:
- got permission from the landowner for the installation
- ensured that planning permission is not required or if it is, for planning permission to have already been granted
- ensured that the local water company is aware of and if necessary gives permission for the installation
- had discussions with an installer to explore costs of installations and any on site installation requirements
- explored issues that relate to ongoing maintenance of the fountain and water testing (e.g. with the local water company).
- Bids that do not satisfactorily evidence this preparatory work will not be considered.
- Sea-Changers require successful applicants to provide regular updates on the progress of the installation and to inform them in a timely way of any potential delays or issues relating to the installation.
- Installed fountains must be mapped on the Refill app.
For answers to FAQ's visit the website here