£1 million fund open to Scottish Highland communities to help support net zero ambitions
06 Oct 2023
A £1 million fund to help drive the net zero ambitions of communities in the Highlands has been opened by SSE Renewables. The fund will provide grants of over £30,000 to help communities across the Highlands realise their ambitions in an environmentally sustainable fashion.
With the drive towards a net zero Scotland gathering pace, the Sustainable Development Fund offers the opportunity for non-profit making organisations, community groups and charities across the Highland region, to deliver transformational social, economic and environmental changes in the local area, support a low carbon future, enable long-term community development, and add value to the local economy.
Over 10 years, the fund has invested £8.1m in the Highland region to support transformational projects, including an award of £146,000 to develop The Ledge Climbing Centre in Inverness, which opened this year. The Ledge, which supports the health, well-being and skills of people of all ages in northern Scotland, used the funds to install low energy lighting and heating, improvements to the centre’s electrical system, and ultrasonic equipment to reduce the amount of water used when cleaning climbing equipment.
"With significant support from the SSE Renewables Sustainable Development Fund, The Ledge has been able to take forward our communities’ vision of providing a modern and sustainable indoor climbing facility for the people of Inverness and beyond. As part of this, we are very pleased that this funding has helped our centre to reduce energy use and so contribute to protecting the very environment that rock climbing depends on."
Duncan MacCallum Manager at The Ledge
"The Sustainable Development Fund is SSE Renewables’ flagship regional fund and this round provides an opportunity for groups across the Highlands to benefit from community funding from its renewable energy infrastructure. Through the fund, SSE Renewables is looking to support community-based projects that will deliver transformative change and contribute towards the region’s transition to net zero."
Lord Jack McConnell Chair of the Sustainable Development Fund
"SSE Renewables is proud to be supporting Scotland’s net zero future. The Sustainable Development Fund plays an important role in the low carbon future of the region and is capitalised by funding from our onshore wind farms. Many high-quality projects in The Highlands have secured funding in previous rounds, and we hope that those coming forward to this round will be ambitious in their contribution to a net zero future for the region."
Finlay McCutcheon Director of Onshore Renewables Europe at SSE Renewables
The deadline for applications to the Sustainable Development Fund is Noon on Wednesday 10 January 2024.
The application form and further information can be found on www.sserenewables.com/communties/sustainable-development-fund