Groups in Weymouth can apply for funding for projects which specifically tackle the climate and ecological emergency, thanks to Weymouth Town Council. 

The council's Environment and Services Committee agreed the new grants scheme at a meeting

In total, £10,000 is up for grabs, and groups can apply for funding of between £500 and £2,500 to support their initiatives. Examples of what the grants can cover include: 

Reducing carbon emissions in businesses or organisations, including community and voluntary groups, projects which will result in greater access to nature areas or supporting improvements in biodiversity, providing education and awareness of the climate and ecological emergency or projects which aim to help communities improve upon their surroundings, from the effects of climate change.  

Cllr Ryan Hope, Chair of the Environment and Services Committee, said: “The new grants can be used to encourage better biodiversity, such as tree planting or sowing wildflowers, and supports Weymouth Town Council’s commitment to tackling the climate and ecological emergency.

"Now the new scheme is up and running, I would encourage community and voluntary groups in Weymouth to apply for the funds to help make the town an even cleaner, greener place to live.”  

At the meeting, some committee members raised questions about the need for the grants, despite the fact they had already been approved by the full council at an earlier date.

Cllr David Gray said: "I am struggling to understand why people can't just apply through the grant scheme which we already have. What is special about this pot of money?

"We can do this through PR, we do not need a separate pot of money for this."

Cllr Peter Dickenson described the grants as a "power grab" by the working group to try to "get their agenda through".

He added: "Having two separate pots for grants is wrong - we have had a climate emergency for five years, when does it end? It will always be with us."

Cllr Helen Toft replied: "This is signposting the real issue of climate change and there is a pot of money available to raise awareness for people and groups who may not have thought about applying for a grant previously.

"It is making people more aware about this very real issue."

More details, including how groups can access the application form is available on Weymouth Town Council’s website.