The new Powering Communities to Net Zero (PCNZ) fund replaces the former Resilient Communities Fund, which saw SSEN award over £5m to around 700 projects over the past nine years.
The new fund is running annually from this summer, through to Spring 2028. More than £3m in grants will be awarded during this time. It'll support communities during prolonged power interruptions caused by storms, aid their ability to cope in periods of severe weather, and is now also supporting the adoption of new low-carbon technologies like solar panels, EV chargers, and smart heating controls.
Half of the £3m funding will be available over the next four years to enable communities to apply for grants that will bolster physical and environmental resilience measures. Grants of up to £15,000 will be awarded to successful applicants in this category.
Over the past few years, hundreds of communities have received support from SSEN Distribution's funding.
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• Earlier this year, members of Whitchurch-on-Thames' Parish Council funded First Aid training for 16 residents after their grant request was successful.
• Fovant Parish Council in Wiltshire (pictured above) now has a fully kitted-out emergency hub for 700 residents, thanks in part to £10,000 from SSEN Distribution. Their new hub will help keep the community safe in severe weather and emergency situations.
• In Hampshire, funding went towards the purchase of a new vehicle, which is now helping the local search and rescue team do more of its life-saving work.
• In Angus, the residents in Eassie and Nevay successfully applied for funding so their village hall can function as a community hub during periods of adverse weather. The grant paid for items like radios, medical equipment, and temporary beds.
• And a community group in Strathisla in Moray used their grant to put together big boxes full of equipment like wind-up torches, battery packs and foil blankets, for use during bad weather and power outages.
Further details of the criteria are found in the fund guidance and in the application form.
Colin McMillan, SSEN's Community Investment Manager, said: "Since we announced the details of this new fund last month, we've had lots of interest in it, and we've answered plenty of questions from would-be applicants, who've told us they'll be applying. In previous years, the submissions have tended to come very close to the deadline, which this year falls on Saturday 31 August.
"But because the fund has changed this year, and with it the application process involved, the last thing I want is for deserving groups and projects to miss the chance of being awarded funding because they didn't get the paperwork done on time. Our team is on hand to help people who're midway through applying but have questions about the process; they can contact me at colin.mcmillan@sse.com."
