National park funding to help bees and other wildlife thrive
A hub for pollinators and a project helping children learn about the night’s sky are among the initiatives to benefit from funding from the South Downs National Park.
The Sustainable Communities Fund (SCF) was set up by the South Downs National Park Trust and the national park authority to benefit the area, with several West Sussex projects given funding.
Doug Jones, who chairs the SCF grants panel, said: “This special landscape is dependent on volunteers and community organisations who give their time and support but often lack funds.
“We’re pleased to be able to award these grants to a variety of really inspirational projects. They are all themed around health and wellbeing, celebrating heritage, giving nature a helping hand and connecting people with place.
“These are core areas of the national park authority’s work and lie at the heart of our five-year Partnership Management Plan, which aims to bring partners together to create an even better home for people and nature.”
The Bees and Seas Project has been awarded a grant of £7,500 to help enhance links between the South Downs and the coast for pollinators, such as bees and butterflies.
The initiative plans to create a pollinator hub in Brooklands Park, Worthing, by transforming an area of derelict land into a community garden, including a bee-friendly lawn, orchard trees, beehives, bug hotels and herb planting.
Outdoor classroom areas would also be provided for children to learn about pollinators and biodiversity.
The project aims to extend habitat links for bees to Dankton Barnyard in Sompting, within the national park, where there is already an existing community garden.
Elsewhere, the Dark Night Skies Project, which encourages Sussex residents, including schoolchildren, to understand and enjoy the night’s sky across the national park and beyond, was given £2,000. And in Fulking, in Mid Sussex, £1,039 was given for a visitor information board about the history and origins of the Fulking Ram Pump.
Mr Jones said: “I’m certainly excited to see the progress of these projects over the coming months and years.”
In East Sussex, a £6,000 grant was approved for a community-led project at Tide Mills, near Newhaven.
The village was condemned as ‘unfit for habitation’ in 1936 and abandoned in 1939.
Spearheaded by LYT
Productions, the creative heritage project plans to bring the fascinating story of the abandoned village to life through a series of digital, artistic and immersive experiences, culminating in a celebratory week in September. The village dates back to the Tidal Mills built in the 1760s, but has also been home to a First World War seaplane station, racing stables, a radio station, a beach hospital, and even a pineapple pit. The last residents of Tide Mills were evicted during the Second World War and the village fell into ruin.
For more information about the Sustainable Communities Fund and to find out about applying for a grant visit www.southdownstrust.org. uk/scf
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