Two community centres have received funding from the Northern Powergrid Foundation to help provide energy resilience in times of need and energy efficiency on everyday occurrences. 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.

DERIC Youth and Community Project

The village and civil parish of Bearpark, Durham, which hosts the DERIC Youth and Community Project, received financial support from the Northern Powergrid Foundation to improve resilience for their community that is predominantly elderly and vulnerable with £9,000 for a generator and emergency packs that include items such as power packs, wind up radios and flasks.

The DERIC Youth and Community Project provides help and guidance alongside social outings and activities in a safe environment for both young people and elderly. The support from the Northern Powergrid Foundation has enabled the centre to remain open to deliver vital services to the local community during times of power interruptions.

Caroline Jackson, Chair of Trustees said "Our centre is a vibrant place that is run predominately by volunteers who want to do their best for the community but with a limited budget, so by receiving funds from the Northern Powergrid Foundation we are pleased to able to continue to deliver our vital services to our elderly community. With the provision of a generator the centre can remain open, light and warm during power interruptions and for those who are less mobile the emergency packs can be shared to use in the comfort of their own homes. The lessons learnt from lockdown and previous years winter storms highlighted weakness in our resilience plans, with the support from our parish council we’ve been able to develop a resilient emergency plan provide our residents with great comfort.”

DERIC Youth and Community Project photo caption L-R: Representatives of the DERIC Youth and Community Project and Anne Haswell, on behalf of the Northern Powergrid Foundation, outside of DERIC Community Hub, Durham. 

Jubilee Fields Community Centre

The town and civil parish of Shildon where the Jubilee Fields Community Centre is located, received financial support from the Northern Powergrid Foundation to improve the resilience of the community and to benefit from energy efficiency. The community centre, located within a high deprivation area is ran by a team of dedicated staff and volunteers and provides a wide variety of services and activities for all ages.

With the £19,775 funds received from the Northern Powergrid Foundation the community project for solar panels and battery storage has enabled the centre to be used as a hub in emergency situations, including in the event of a power interruption, for the rural community. The project will not only increase the centre’s resilience but also improve the centre's energy efficiency and thus benefitting from reduced energy bills and further savings to be passed onto the community in terms of service offering.  

Lesley Bowes, Senior Community Support Worker, said "Our centre’s focus is to bring communities, especially isolated communities together, with the funds from the Northern Powergrid Foundation the centre is able to do just that. With the provision of solar panels and battery storage the centre becomes a focal point at keeping community spirit high when it is needed most as it means the centre will remain open continuing to delivering services and allowing the local community to find refuge during power interruptions. The centre’s resilience has heightened and the efficiency has improved thanks to the support.” 

Hannah Hanratty, Chair of Trustees, said “After the struggles our community faced following Storm Arwen, the support from the Northern Powergrid Foundation is even more essential. To have the assurance that Jubilee Fields can support our community in a time of need, is welcomed. With the ongoing financial struggles charities like ourselves face with rising utility costs, the addition of solar panels will help relieve some of those pressures, and will allow us to give back to the community. Thank you to the Northern Powergrid Foundation for their generous contribution to help secure our future.”

Jubilee Fields Community Centre photo caption L-R: Lesley Bowes, Senior Community Support Worker, outside of Jubilee Fields Community Centre, Durham. 

Support offered by the Northern Powergrid Foundation

The funding awarded by the Northern Powergrid Foundation so far across two grant windows has awarded over £860,000 to 60 projects across all the charity’s priorities located within all of Northern Powergrid’s regions. The funded communities are delivering unique and exciting projects, most of which have a focus in enabling communities to be self-sufficient and resilient. Over 40 of which are unique and exciting energy resilience projects for communities within Northumberland and County Durham (totalling £560,000) worst affected by Storm Arwen in 2021. These projects have largely been for the creation of, or the expansion of community hubs with energy resilience pieces of kit such as the provision of generators, solar panels and heat pumps.

Kate Bradley, Northern Powergrid Foundation Trustee said: “The Northern Powergrid Foundation is proud to support both the DERIC Youth and Community Project and Jubilee Fields Community Association to help them build resilience in their communities, especially during the winter months. The funding will help centres like the one’s in Bearpark and Shildon located in Durham to continue to provide their important services to local residents.”

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 reopen to grant applications in 2024. 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.