Grant success at Venlaw

Venlaw Community Woodland’s Management Committee at Peebles was pleased to learn early in 2010 that their application to the Scottish Community Foundation for grant funding had been successful.
The Group’s Secretary, Douglas Wright, had submitted an application for an Express Grant, to cover much-needed tree surgery work in Venlaw Community Woodland, to address some identified safety concerns and ongoing woodland management issues, which were beyond the group’s financial resources. With help and advice from Borders Forest Trust, the Scottish Community Foundation [SCF] was identified as a possible source for funding assistance. Having successfully completed a recent approved training course for use of a chainsaw, Douglas had also included costings for the purchase of a chainsaw, plus ancillary equipment and required personal protective equipment. The application form was finally submitted in December 2009, and an anxious waiting period began, before Douglas had a telephone call from one of SCF’s grant assessors. After undertaking a verbal review and assessment of the merits of the application in late January 2010, he was pleased to receive written confirmation in early February that their application had been successful.
The award from the Scottish Community Foundation provided a grant of £1557 to pay for the work required in the Woodland, plus the other components of the application, and when the cheque arrived later in February, it was accompanied by a Certificate indicating that, “Venlaw Community Woodland has been awarded a grant to support its valuable work in the community from the Scottish Community Foundation”.
Venlaw Community Woodland is pleased to share its good news, and to acknowledge the assistance of SCF, which works with a range of people, companies and charitable trusts to help them give to good causes through their grant programmes.                          In particular, grateful thanks and acknowledgement is given to the ‘Caledonian Challenge Walkers Fund’, - whose support had made this award possible from the Scottish Community Foundation.
Douglas says that this grant has already been put to good use. In order to make use of the short period left before the leaf-budding and bird-nesting season, immediate steps were taken to bring in a qualified tree surgeon to undertake the safety and arboricultural works which had been identified as urgently required at Venlaw Woodland. At the beginning of March, a team from Caledon Gardens began the work in various parts of the Woodland, and very quickly had the work completed to a very satisfactory standard.   Since then, the Management Committee has been able to use the remaining grant component for the purchase of a chainsaw, together with the necessary personal protective equipment.