Churches awarded grants from green recovery fund

Church of Scotland congregations and associated groups have been awarded around £180,000 in funding from the Scottish Government to support environmentally friendly projects.

The Community Climate Asset Fund, which was set up last year to support a green recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, selected 13 church initiatives to receive grants.

A total of 279 groups across Scotland successfully applied for the grant, which is administered by Keep Scotland Beautiful.

Mary Sweetland, who is the eco-convener at Lomond Parish Church and successfully applied for funding for double glazing, said:

"Lomond Parish Church is a Gold Award holder with Eco-Congregation Scotland and had a Resource Efficient Scotland energy efficiency assessment to hand.

"The timescales for the applications for funding were tight, but we knew what further work we had to do to further reduce our Carbon Footprint.

"We got two quotations, permission from Kirk Session, Presbytery, Planning Advice within a three-week time frame and completed the application to replace single glazing with double glazing in the vestibule and hall corridor at the church.

"The work has all to be completed by Easter.

"Reducing our energy use has the greatest impact on CO2 emissions, and if the Church of Scotland is to become a Net Zero organisation in the next 10 years, all congregations and presbyteries will need to tackle energy efficiency."

The grant recipients are:

Angus

• East and Old Parish Church. For food growing equipment. £1,819.64.

City of Edinburgh

• Stockbridge Parish Church. For community building energy efficiency improvements. £3,790.80.

Dumfries and Galloway

• Kirkcudbright Parish Church. For community building energy efficiency improvements. £3,705.00.
  "Kirkmahoe Parish Hall Committee. For community building energy efficiency improvements. £7,558.46.

East Dunbartonshire

• Campsie Parish Church of Scotland. For secondary glazing to reduce local carbon emissions by making the church building more energy efficient. £14,257.66

Fife

• Cairneyhill Parish Church. For secondary glazing to reduce local carbon emissions by making the church more energy efficient. £16,364.70

Glasgow City

• Garthamlock and Craigend Parish Church. For food growing equipment. £9,908.30.
• St Paul's Youth Forum. For growing materials, electric bikes and an electric vehicle to help the people of Blackhill in Glasgow to reduce local carbon emissions by growing food and travelling more sustainably. £29,988.87

Highland

• Crown Church of Scotland. For community building energy efficiency improvements. £9,955.58.

North Lanarkshire

• Cairnlea Parish Church of Scotland. For double glazing, floor, and roof insulation to reduce local carbon emissions by making the Cairnlea House building in Airdrie more energy efficient. £26,993.93

Perth & Kinross

• St Madoes and Kinfauns Parish Church. For an electric car to help the communities of the Carse of Gowrie to reduce local carbon emissions by making Covid-19 response deliveries and trips to medical appointments more sustainable. £22,616.10

Scottish Borders

• Newlands and Kirkurd Womens Guild Playgroup. For food growing equipment. £9,366.55.

West Dunbartonshire

• Lomond Parish Church. For double glazing to reduce local carbon emissions by making the church building more energy efficient. £19,307.08

Find out more

Follow news about the Community Climate Asset fund on social media at:

• Twitter: @KSBScotland @ScotGovClimate @GreenerScotland
• Facebook: @KSBScotland @GreenerScotland

You can join in on social media using hashtag #CCAFScot.

Alternatively find out more on the Keep Scotland Beautiful website.