Community groups and initiatives across Dumfries and Galloway are being invited to apply for a share of £20,000 from the 2025 Stranoch Wind Farm Sponsorship Fund as it opens for applications in the coming days.
EDF power solution UK’s annual fund for the wind farm supports small-scale grants for projects that make a positive difference to local people, particularly those living in and around the communities closest to the Stranoch development, located between New Luce and Barrhill.
Eligible groups are encouraged to apply for grants that can help strengthen community wellbeing, improve local facilities or support environmental and educational initiatives.
The Sponsorship Fund forms part of EDF power solutions UK’s commitment to working closely with residents and community organisations while construction continues at the 20-turbine, 102MW Stranoch Wind Farm.
Ahead of the wind farm becoming operational, the Sponsorship Fund provides early support to local organisations as construction progresses. The Fund will open on Monday 15 December 2025 for applications and will close on Monday 19 January 2026.
Once the wind farm is operational, EDF power solutions UK will launch a Community Benefit Fund worth more than £510,000 per year, totalling at least £15.3 million over the lifetime of the project.
A number of local organisations have previously benefitted from the annual fund, with 11 projects and initiatives across the area awarded a share of the funding in the last year.
This includes funding to Meet for a Heat, a safe place for senior citizens to gather for a free meal during the winter in Newton Stewart; training for a charity targeting isolation and loneliness across the area and a storage container to provide a community pantry and hot food to the community free of charge in Castle Douglas.
Part funding has also been awarded to a charity in Castle Douglas which refurbishes and redistributes IT equipment; event nights for a local youth centre in Dumfries; battery storage for a local reuse shop to make its processes more sustainable; running costs for
a men’s shed in Moffat and money towards an eco-friendly garden area at Barrhill Primary School.
A Listening Ear is a volunteer-led befriending service set up to tackle loneliness and isolation across Dumfries and Galloway and benefitted from a grant of £1,000 from last year’s fund.
Morag Letson, Project Manager at A Listening Ear commented: “We are very grateful for the grant from the 2024 Stranoch wind farm sponsorship fund. Grants such as these are crucial to helping us to train up our volunteers and expand our reach. The grant has been used to purchase an A5 handbook and a projector, making it easier for our volunteers to get the information they need easily and for us to complete training sessions.”Yusuf Patel, Chief Technical Officer at EDF power solutions UK, said: “We are very pleased to open the 2025 Sponsorship Fund and to continue supporting community groups across Dumfries and Galloway. Local organisations play a vital role in strengthening resilience, providing services and creating opportunities, and we want this fund to help them continue that important work. We would encourage any group with a project that could benefit local people to apply.”
Community groups and initiatives across the area are invited to review the application form and guidance before submitting their proposal. The form can be downloaded from here.
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