A village hall has received funding from the Northern Powergrid Foundation to help provide resilience during a power crisis. The Northern Powergrid Foundation, established by Northern Powergrid, the company responsible for the electricity distribution network that powers the lives of 8 million people in the North East, Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire, is passionate about being able to support communities and creating resilient and thriving communities through access to funds.  

Cowshill Village Hall

The village at the top of Weardale, Cowshill, County Durham received financial support from the Northern Powergrid Foundation to enhance resilience at Cowshill Village Hall, a hub for local residents. The village hall will put the £5,142.28 to good use by spending it on resilience kit to ensure local residents can stay safe, warm and entertained during power interruptions. 

John Greenbank, Cowshill Village Hall Secretary said “The grant from the Northern Powergrid Foundation will improve the energy efficiency of the hall going forward and also enable the hall to provide essential support and facilities to members of the local community in the event of future extreme weather events such as Storm Arwen”. 

Cowshill Village Hall photo caption L-R: MP Richard Holden, Cowshill Village Hall Committee members and Anne Haswell, Northern Powergrid Foundation Project Manager, outside of Cowshill Village Hall. 

Support offered by the Northern Powergrid Foundation

The funding awarded is part of a batch of successful applications to The Northern Powergrid Foundation, which was set up to support and improve local community energy resilience. The scheme has, so far, awarded £560,000 and supported over 40 projects across Northumberland and County Durham worst hit by the winter storms of 2021-22. Ten of these projects are located in MP Richard Holden’s constituency of North West Durham and have received a total funding of over £90,000 from The Foundation. The funded communities are delivering unique and exciting projects that will have a lasting impact by enabling hubs to be self-sufficient in supporting their residents today, tomorrow and in the future. Projects include the establishment or the expansion of community hubs so that the likes of community halls and parish halls can play a vital role in keeping their community safe and warm during power interruptions with the introduction of solar panels, heat pumps and generators.  

Louise Lowes, Northern Powergrid Foundation Trustee said: “It’s great to see the Foundation support projects such as Cowshill that will provide residents with resilience during power interruptions. The Foundation is looking forward to supporting more community projects served by Northern Powergrid that have a focus on one or more of the charity’s key priority areas”.  

More about The Northern Powergrid Foundation  

The Northern Powergrid Foundation will officially launch soon. The Foundation has awarded funds to communities across the North East, Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire served by Northern Powergrid. The Foundation’s mission, complementing Northern Powergrid’s ambition to be a force for good in the communities it serves, is to support communities most affected by changes in the economy, environment, and society because of the shifting energy landscape. This will be achieved by supporting projects focused on helping to tackle energy resilience during emergency events, vulnerability, fuel poverty, levelling the rural divide, innovation, social support, and community collaboration. The Foundation will work with community partners to identify the best ways to create a positive and enduring impact for communities located within Northern Powergrid’s region.

The Foundation will be open for applications biannually. The Foundation is currently assessing applications received in this latest round from all communities served by Northern Powergrid covering activities that are in support of the charity’s priorities. Community groups interested in finding out more about the Foundation and when to apply for funding up to £20,000 should visit www.northernpowergridfoundation.com