Lottery cash to improve community venues

The largest of the National Lottery Good Cause Distributors has launched Energy Efficient Venues, a 5m programme supporting organisations to carry out energy efficient improvements to their community venues that will help them make savings on their heating and lighting costs and benefit the environment.

The Big Lottery Fund will be holding two information sessions at the Loughgiel Millennium Centre on Wednesday 2nd June to give local people, community groups and organisations a chance to find out about the programme and whether they can apply.

The first information session takes place from 1pm – 4:30pm, and the second session takes place from 5:30pm – 9pm, so you can attend whatever session best suits you.

Organisations can apply for two grant sizes through the programme. Grants of 2,000 - 10,000 are available for groups to carry out vital improvements such as double glazing or installing a more energy efficient heating system.

Projects can also apply for this grant size to carry out an energy audit to find out how to make their venue more energy efficient or to pay for planning permission if it is needed to develop an application.

And grants of 15,000 - 50,000 could give organisations the opportunity to make a number of small scale improvements, or if the venue is already energy efficient, install micro-generation technology like solar panels, wind turbines, or biomass technologies such as wood pellet boilers.

Carrying out these improvements could help organisations save money so they can run extra community activities such as dancing classes or a youth club and attract new members.

There's a hive of activity at the newly refurbished Eden Orange Hall in Ballymoney. For years the century-old building lay practically unused, but now there's a new injection of life following a dramatic make-over and a host of energy efficient work.

Bann Valley Community Association, which runs the hall, was awarded 50,000 by the Big Lottery Fund to carry out a range of renovations – and they are now attracting 150 people a week to the hall to take part in a wide range of activities.

These include accordion band practice, a ladies only keep fit class - as well as two other exercise classes for all ages, a Friday night youth club and the creation of a Tin Whistle Club, as well as monthly lodge meetings and birthday parties.

And this flurry of activity, combined with energy efficient measures, is saving the association hundreds of pounds a year.

Community association member Ivor Dunlop explained that heating bills have reduced thanks to a new and fully insulated roof, and a new oil fired heating system.

"We put on a complete new roof as the old slate one was so high and had no insulation so all the heat was just flying through it," said Ivor. "We completely gutted the old hall and added an extension comprising a small office and kitchen and toilets, including disabled ones.

"The hall now looks so bright and welcoming and the community are definitely using it. Before the renovations there were no activities here apart from band practice once a week and we had no money to pay the bills.

"But now we are generating money through groups paying to use the hall and the bills are being split between the groups which makes thing easier too."

Times have certainly changed for the group's members. "An old pot bellied stove was used to heat the hall before the grant," said Ivor. "There were nights we could hardly get into the hall because of all the black smoke and we'd have to leave the heat on all day just to generate a bearable heat".

However the new heating system is based on a heat regulating system and switches itself off when a certain temperature is reached. Ivor said: "We would have used one tank of oil a year even when the hall was only being used for one night a week. And even though the hall is used nearly every day we are not even using a tank a year so we're definitely more energy efficient," he said.

"The Big Lottery Fund grant has transformed the lives of this community and brought us all closer together because we're all going to more activities and getting to know each other better.

"In fact we held a St Patrick's Night Hooley for the first time in March which was a great night. And schools and other groups are making enquiries about using the hall too.

"There's lots of plans for the future and the association is hoping to introduce computer classes. There is great community support for the building now – from near and far."

Information and application packs for the Energy Efficient Venues programme are available from 19th May 2010. You can access these by visiting the programme pages of our website www.biglotteryfund.org.uk or by calling the Big Lottery Fund's Information and Events team on 028 9055 1455.