East Dumfriesshire Regional Community Plan 2020

Home , Clarencefield, Dornock, Dryfe Water, Dumfriesshire, Hart Fell, Hoddom

EAST DUMFRIESSHIRE REGIONAL COMMUNITY PLAN 2020

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Prepared by Creetown Initiative Ltd. Contents 1. Preface

1. Preface 3 Since the Minsca windfarm project was launched by Ventient Energy in 2008, some communities in East 1.1 Covid-19 in 2020/21 Dumfriesshire have been able to receive windfarm community beneft funds amounting to £52,600 annually. The larger Ewe Hill project, owned by ScottishPower Renewables, came on stream in 2017. Through it, up to the end of 2020, about 60 small-to-medium size grants have been offered – Community 2. Area Profile 5 Transport, Sports and Community Facilities, Environmental, Arts and Regeneration Schemes, Youth and Welfare ventures – have been supported. Each of these projects has merit and they have all brought 2.1 Langholm/Lockerbie beneft to communities in the East Dumfriesshire area. 2.2 The smaller Communities The communities in receipt of Ewe Hill funding came together to form the Dumfriesshire East Community Beneft Group (DECBG) on 19th July 2017. A registered SCIO, DECBG draws its members from the 3. Area Challenges 12 communities in receipt of funds. The funds from the Ewe Hill scheme are allocated to a local Ewe Hill 3.1 Employment and Housing 6 group of communities who individually decide how the funds are spent in their communities and a ‘wider’ Ewe Hill 16 fund covering the East Dumfriesshire area and distributed through a grant scheme 3.2 Transport operated by DECBG. At present the two Ewe Hill funds provide a combined total of £253,000 annually. 3.3 Social Isolation Several other windfarms are under construction, in process or planned in the area. The available funds 3.4 Homecare Support will therefore, in all probability, grow very signifcantly. However, how all the funds emanating from 3.5 Internet/Broadband those other windfarm projects will be administered, and whether or not they might be coordinated is at present not clear. 3.6 Tourism The purpose of this Plan is to set out what local community priorities are following consultation to inform how windfarm funds alongside other funding available to communities in the area can be 4. The Consultation Process 15 used. Although windfarm funds will continue to support small-to-medium size projects in the future, 4.1 Ewe Hill 6 Area: One-to-One Interviewing it is hoped that longer-term, longer-lasting projects with a broader, area-wide beneft, can also be 4.2 Wider Community Consultation - the Questionnaire brought forward. The ‘legacy’ project ideas captured through this process have come from an in- depth consultation with local communities. The consultation determined what kind of projects the communities wanted, where the greatest need was, what diffculties there might be, which projects 5. Consultation Findings 17 would provide the biggest beneft, and which would be achievable. The consultation feedback sets out what these key projects might be and how they can be achieved. It covers the whole area but 5.1 One-to-One Interviewing includes details which are specifc to its local communities. 5.2 Responses to the Community Consultation Questionnaire In today’s world, communities in receipt of windfarm funds have an advantage over others. With falling 5.3 Further Analysis of Feedback - The Most Popular Ideas lottery revenues and the loss of EU funding, the competition for funding support will become ever more challenging. Access to community beneft funds is therefore a positive advantage for projects within 6. The Action Plan 23 a windfarm’s area. 6.1 East Dumfries Community Manager (EDCM) It is though, essential that these funds are used to maximum effect. Communities in receipt of 6.2 Next Steps windfarm funds may become too reliant on these funds for smaller projects. Where, in the past, there were fundraising social events, bringing communities together in dances, sales and coffee mornings, 6.3 Project Costs which often raised money for smaller projects, the danger now is that communities cease coming 6.4 Project Match Funding together to support a common cause and rely on the funding available from windfarms. This could lead to a reduction in ownership of projects and community cohesion. This Plan should not stop such groups applying for support and will still need people to work in communities to make things happen. 7. Conclusion 28 Hopefully, it will also encourage people to get behind more strategic approaches to using these funds 7.1 Opportunities and Challenges that go beyond their own communities. 7.2 Comments on the Management of Funds 7.3 A Longer-Term Vision

2 3 1.1 Covid-19 in 2020/21 Much of the work for this Action Plan was carried out before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. 2. Area Profle Even now, many months in, it is diffcult to predict what the full impacts will be. Impacts there will be - The area which centres on the Ewe Hill windfarm project, is bounded by river valleys. To the east across all aspects of life – and for a long time to come. and south-east are Eskdale and Ewes Water, with the Border hills around them and the main town of Langholm. To the west is Annandale and its surrounding, lower lying agricultural land with the main Funding towns of Lockerbie and Gretna. Between these is an area of higher hills, including Ewe Hill, which form Securing funding in the immediate future from other sources will be challenging. At present most an area of undulating hill ground, which is proving to be an attractive ‘land form’ on which to position funders are directing their resources at existing projects to ensure they do not fail and that their windfarms. This is characterised by hill farming and extensive plantation forestry with small, often quite previous investments are secured. As a result, some standard funding streams have been, or may be, isolated, communities. suspended, or have less funds available. Match funding may be hard to obtain. Windfarm beneft funds may effectively be the main available source of funding in the East Dumfriesshire area. The wider area covers thirteen community council areas: Eskdalemuir; Lockerbie and District; North Milk; Langholm, Ewes and Westerkirk; Hoddom and Ecclefechan; Middlebie and Waterbeck; Canonbie and District; Kirtle and Eaglesfeld; Springfeld and Gretna Green; Brydekirk and District; Eastriggs, Dornock Project Delivery and Creca; Gretna and Rigg, Springfeld and Gretna Green. It is diffcult to predict what levels of social distancing will remain over a prolonged period. Some degree is likely to remain, and this will affect the ability of organisations to deliver projects. As such, An inner cluster (closer round the windfarm itself) of fve of the ‘district groups’ forms the Ewe Hill 6 area: it might be prudent to schedule projects in order of what, in this context, can be progressed most Boreland in Hutton; Corrie; Tundergarth (all in North Milk); Middlebie and Waterbeck; Langholm, Ewes effectively. and Westerkirk. In this cluster, Langholm is by far the biggest settlement, with a population of 2,227. The smallest is Corrie with a population of 68. Support Specific to Covid-19 In this consultation Ewe Hill 6 was used as a core consultation and discussion group, while a postal This Action Plan does not include projects that are specifcally designed to support people through questionnaire consultation was used to gauge attitudes across most of the wider Ewe Hill 16 area. the Covid-19 crisis. Some spend has taken place to support community volunteer initiatives and some of these may continue to need support. There are also other funds available at present which are The main industries in the area are farming, forestry, and quarrying. Most of the land from west to designed to support Covid-19 related projects. These avenues should be investigated and borne in east is given over to activity in these industries. The area also includes several estates and much of mind. the housing stock is owned by these estates. The two larger towns in the area, towards which the scattered rural populations gravitate for services provision, are Langholm in the east of the area and Lockerbie in the west. Tourism plays a small role, especially in Langholm, and to a lesser degree in Positive Impacts of Covid-19 and Potential Lessons Lockerbie, and it is recognised that there is scope for improvement in this sector. Other employment is The reduction in CO2 emissions, much of it because of substantial reduction in travel, has been a in education, retail, land management and civic administration. positive impact of Covid-19, but it has come at a painful cost. Over the past months many people have adapted to working from home, in some cases where it might previously have been deemed The smaller communities across the landscape between Lockerbie and Langholm tend to relate inappropriate. Employers have realised unforeseen benefts - from reduced travel and offce more to either one town or to the other, depending on closeness and convenience. Recognising overheads, to possibly happier and more productive staff. ‘Home-working’ can be done wherever opportunities for whole-area projects will be a challenge. Nevertheless, smaller communities do you live, but infrastructure must be available. That more people might work from home adds weight recognise the usefulness to them of projects outside their immediate settlement, either in larger towns to the argument that improving internet connectivity in the East Dumfriesshire area is essential. There or in the wider countryside. Moreover, although major projects might not be based within the smaller is also a prediction that more people may move out of cities into what they perceive as safer, easier settlements, the beneft to them could be delivered through outreach activities. rural environments. While this could be an opportunity, an understanding of the area as a place to In the distribution of project funding from the Ewe Hill fund, the DECBG agreement with ScottishPower live, work and play needs to be strengthened. Too often Dumfries and Galloway sells itself short. The Renewables allows projects in communities across the East Dumfriesshire area to be supported. natural beauty of the area, its low levels of pollution, its relatively lower property prices and crime rates Some of these have had benefts for several, or all, of the communities. As funds from new windfarm all need to be promoted. Windfarm beneft funds could be used to improve facilities and services to projects come on stream, the funds are likely to expand, creating opportunities for more ambitious expand the quality of life for people already living in the region. and benefcial projects to be collaboratively funded.

4 5 290000 300000 310000 320000 330000 340000 350000 360000

Royal Burgh of Sanquhar & District Moffat & District

Durisdeer ¯

Carronbridge Eskdalemuir

0 Kirkpatrick Juxta 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 Thornhill 6

Wamphray

Closeburn

Johnstone

Langholm, Ewes, and Westerkirk Keir Ae

Kirkmichael North Milk ! Auldgirth ! ! ! ! ! Templand !!! ! ! ! !! Kirkmahoe ! ! ! ! ! ! !! Lockerbie & District Amisfield & Tinwald Royal Burgh of Dunscore Lochmaben & District

0 Holywood & 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

290000 300000 310000 320000 330000 340000 350000 360000 Royal Burgh of Sanquhar & District Moffat & District EWE-I-083 2.1 Langholm and 1Lockerbie:200,000 Km Drg No 0 2.5 5 10 Ewe Hill 16 Scale @ A3 Rev A Datum: Community Benefit Fund OSGB36 A 22/02/17 DD First Issue. © Crown Copyright 2017. All rights reserved. Date 22/02/17 Throughout the consultation, thereOrdnance Su rwasvey Licenc e a010 0strong031673. sense thatComm upeoplenity Area in Langholm, in the east, largely seeProjec tion: Rev Date By Comment Figure 1 TM the town as a place to live and to commute from - to work elsewhere - while people in Lockerbie, in Durisdeer Map of Ewe Hill 16 Community Beneft the west, live there because it is near to where they actually work. Fund Area ¯ Langholm has suffered key losses in industry over the past fve years, including the relocation of the Edinburgh Woollen Mill head offce to Carlisle and the closure of the Border Fine Arts factory. Up to 22 mills were once operational in Langholm. Very few still operate today. In many ways, the town is Carronbridge Eskdalemuir having to re-invent itself. Groups such as Langholm Alliance are leading the way by producing a Ten-

0 Kirkpatrick Juxta 0 0 0

0 Year Plan which is intended to help coalesce actions0 and set out a way forward. 0 0 0 0 6 Thornhill 6 Positioned amidst surrounding hills and where Ewes Water joins the River Esk, the town is not just a Wamphray meeting point of two valleys - it is a congregating place for services and facilities for a much larger area. Provided resources are made available to take projects forward, progress is possible. Windfarm community beneft funds may support groups like Langholm Alliance to institute practical change. Closeburn An interesting omittance from the Langholm Ten-Year Plan is the absence of reference to housing. As a town that potentially sees its future as residential, with a strong commuter population who could travel Johnstone to Edinburgh, Carlisle and Dumfries for work, it is surprising the Ten-Year Plan does not consider current housing stock, nor what future housing requirements might be. There has been little signifcant new Langholm, Ewes, housing built in Langholm for several years and the bulk of its housing stock is more than 70 years old. As such much of it needs upgrading. The town has several empty warehouses and other buildings that Ae and Westerkirk Keir might be converted into housing. Langholm also has limited job opportunities. The graph below shows employment diversity as percentages in the town’s total working-age population. (Source: Scotland’s Towns Partnership) Kirkmichael North Milk ! Auldgirth ! ! ! ! ! Templand !!! ! ! ! !! Kirkmahoe ! ! ! ! ! ! !! Lockerbie & District Amisfield & Tinwald Royal Burgh of Dunscore Lochmaben & District

0 Holywood & 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

8 Newbridge 8 5 Locharbriggs Middlebie & Waterbeck 5 Lochside & Woodlands Royal Four Irongray Lincluden Heathhall Terregles Torthorwald Towns Summerville & Stakeford Canonbie & District Loreburn Corberry & Laurieknowe St Michaels / Cresswell Hoddom Ryedale & Ecclefechan Georgetown Kirtle & Eaglesfield Dalton & Carrutherstown Lochrutton Kingholm Quay Mouswald Kirkpatrick Troqueer Landward Fleming Brydekirk & District Lockerbie, in comparison, has had several new housing developments over the past 20 years. This Beeswing Ruthwell & Clarencefield probably reflects the difference in the employment opportunities each town offers and the fact Cummertrees Eastriggs, Springfield that Lockerbie has a railway station and is close to the A74M. Lockerbie has diverse employment Dornock Legend & Cummertrees & Gretna Green opportunities, as shown in the graph overleaf. The comparison with Langholm (above) is instructive: & Creca Gretna & Rigg ! West (Source: Scotland’sEwe H Townsill 16 Partnership). Caerlaverock Royal Burgh of Annan ! Kirkgunzeon Ewe Hill 6 New Abbey Site Boundary

Applicant Eligibility Area 6 7

290000 300000 310000 320000 330000 340000 350000 360000

EWE-I-083 1:200,000 Km Drg No 0 2.5 5 10 Ewe Hill 16 Scale @ A3 Rev A Datum: Community Benefit Fund OSGB36 A 22/02/17 DD First Issue. © Crown Copyright 2017. All rights reserved. Date 22/02/17 Ordnance Survey Licence 0100031673. Community Area Projection: Rev Date By Comment Figure 1 TM Early on, it became apparent that the conversations were taking on a slightly different emphasis to those in, for example, Waterbeck and Middlebie. In those villages, maybe because there is little community ownership, nor easy access to land beyond the actual villages themselves, suggestions for wider projects tended to be tentative. In Boreland, where there seems to be a ready ability to walk along the river or follow tracks into forest areas or onto the hills, people had an ability to spread their thinking into the surrounding landscape. What had not fully dawned on the Consultants beforehand, but soon did, is how increasingly present windfarms are becoming in this area. As with the other communities in this consultation, people had experience of the funding available through the Minsca Windfarm, and were well aware of Ewe Hill, opened in 2017. As well as these, a new development, Crossdykes, is under construction nearby. More developments at Little Hart Fell (12 units) and Scoop Hill (60 units), between Boreland and Moffat, are being proposed. The protocols of how the funds from each windfarm are structured, communicated, understood and distributed in a consistent and fair way can be of as much importance to many of the people with whom we spoke as proposals for particular projects.

Corrie (North Milk): Corrie Common, with a population of 68, and which is at the centre of a more Whereas the challenges of attracting medium-to-large scale employers into Langholm or some of the widespread community of about 80 households, is 2 miles, as the crow flies, west of the Ewe Hill smaller communities might be diffcult, doing so in Lockerbie is less of a challenge. The reason primarily windfarm. It is 6 miles east from Lockerbie and is reached by a steadily rising road which dips to cross for this is Lockerbie’s rail and road network. It has good structural connectivity, some major established Corrie Water in a wide valley, before climbing further to reach the village. About 700 feet above sea businesses, and a larger workforce. As such employment in Lockerbie will - to a degree - look after itself level, on the west-facing edge of the hills, the fact that it has used windfarm money to purchase its own or be encouraged by key drivers such as the Borderlands Initiative. snow plough and gritter gives a sense of its isolated position and its own resourcefulness. That isolation Small scale employers, home-based or similar, can, however, be encouraged by intervention from is geographical, but there is also a feeling, with funding cuts impacting on the public administration, windfarm funds, for example by improving internet connectivity. This might not involve provision of of isolation from the County Council’s consciousness. A generation ago a high proportion of Corrie’s actual capital equipment, but it may involve working with government agencies to help improve the population worked on the Castle Milk estate, a situation which naturally created community for the situation. inhabitants of the village. Nowadays the population is much more diffuse, with people often working away, rather than locally. There is a resilient, almost island-like, nature to Corrie’s community and a familiarity with the existence of windfarm community beneft funding. This is not just to do with the proximity of the Ewe Hill windfarm. 2.2 The Smaller Communities As well as the purchase of the gritter and snow plough (used in emergency, for example, to enable district nurses to reach vulnerable people living remotely), Minsca funding had enabled improvements There was a big difference in how the consulting process opened out in Langholm as compared to to the Village Hall and the play park next to it. the smaller communities in the Ewe Hill 6 area. One clear reason is to be found in the sheer number and range of groups present in Langholm. (The estimated number varies, but ‘over 70’ is commonly stated). All the villages in the Ewe Hill 6 area have volunteers working hard to make initiatives happen. Seldom far from the surface, though, is a sense of struggle in what volunteers can realistically achieve Tundergarth (North Milk): Once you have crossed Corrie Water, a mile or so east on the B7068 to and in knowing what their community really wants. Langholm from Lockerbie, you begin to enter the area which is Tundergarth. More a ‘fermtoun’ than an actual clustered village, the community is spread up this road and centred on Bankshill, a couple The Consultants depended on their own initial observations during the one-to-one interviews to fnd of miles further along. Here is a hamlet of buildings which include the School and the Village Hall. out what people thought. Taken together, they form a portrait of the Ewe Hill 6 area. However, it does Tundergarth is a farming community. Some of the farms are part of the Castle Milk Estate and some seem that concerns expressed in those interviews were borne out through the answers returned with are independent businesses. In conversations about community life in Tundergarth, it became clear the Community Questionnaire. This indicates the existence of a general common set of concerns and that, for some farming families, of equal importance is another, car-dependant community formed desires prevalent and widespread in the rural communities across the region. with other farming families across Annandale and even Nithsdale. It is guessed that there are about 80 households in the area. Recently, over three years the number of pupils at the Primary School dropped The descriptions here contribute to the Area Profle. The more detailed one-to-one reports are presented alarmingly from 19 to 6. It now stands at 8 and may improve further. These fgures give a picture into together with the edited feedback comments from the Questionnaire in the separate document, ‘East the vulnerabilities of small communities which depend on a very few key services to build a sense of Dumfriesshire Community Consultation Feedback’. identity. Because the Tundergarth area is more open and spread out than Boreland and Corrie, and because the community is close to Lockerbie, there seems to be a ready, ‘well-worn path’ down to that town, at least if you have a car. Nevertheless, Tundergarth is still clearly not a suburb of Lockerbie. Boreland in Hutton (North Milk): is the northernmost of the three communities in the North Milk Community It is decidedly its own rural community. Council area. Situated on the B723 in the valley by Dryfe Water, roughly midway between Lockerbie and Eskdalemuir, it is to the north west of the Ewe Hill site. Beyond the village, up the valley and into the hills, is wilder, sparsely populated and largely forested territory. With a population of about 180, it is said there are 80 approx. households in the wider community.

8 9 Middlebie and Waterbeck: Situated between Ecclefechan and Langholm, directly to the south-west and south of the Ewe Hill site, Middlebie and Waterbeck is a two-village Community Council area with a population of (according to the Dumfries and Galloway Council website) about 387. Quoting the electoral roll from memory, a Community Councillor estimated that Middlebie, clustered around a crossroads, consists of about 130 households; Waterbeck, more stretched out along its main road, has about 150 households. These fgures may embrace a sense of ‘community territory’ at variance with the County Council’s view, but they give a useful feeling for the area’s human make-up. They will also include farms that are spread out across a landscape that rises gradually from river valleys to the edge of the higher ground that makes up the central part of the Borders region. Everyone was aware of the funding available through the Minsca windfarm (in their vicinity) and able to mention projects that had beneftted from it. Some projects, such as Waterbeck Public Hall, have received funding from Minsca, Ewe Hill 6 and Ewe Hill 16. However, clearly identifying possible future projects was not easy. These are quite isolated communities where, once you are there, Lockerbie or Langholm can seem distant.

Westerkirk (Bentpath) and Ewes: Bentpath in Westerkirk parish, is situated on the River Esk as it winds south east through close packed hills from Eskdalemuir. Ewes is on Ewes Water, which rises from various sources in the high ground around Wisp Hill at the head of the valley, to flow southward through a more open valley to meet the River Esk at Langholm. The two small communities, roughly fve miles up their respective valleys, are included in the same Community Council area as Langholm but they are very different places to the larger town, and each has its own distinct concerns. They are a similar distance from Langholm as the three North Milk communities are from Lockerbie. The consultees from these two communities had an awareness of, and an involvement with, both the issues facing Langholm and the concerns of their own particular communities. They felt, too, that sometimes this attention was not always reciprocated in a general appreciation for their respective situations up the two valleys. Westerkirk and Ewes tend towards a single focus within their respective communities. This does not mean that the multiple interests and concerns that have been voiced by the other small communities do not concern them. (a) Westerkirk: While it has a functioning village hall, Bentpath is also home to a 19th Century Parish Library, in complete, original condition, established for the use of its local community of miners and other workers. Historically important, it is a landmark in workingmen’s history. The project to maintain it and make it available to interested visitors has been ongoing for many years. Concerns, however, around social isolation, digital communication, transport and community support were also expressed as much as elsewhere. (b) Ewes: While the Church continues to hold services, the Village Hall is effectively now the flexible, communal building for the whole Ewes Water valley. Dominating concerns in Ewes is the Faw Side windfarm development, which proposes the positioning of large, offshore size windmills on top of the scarp along the west side of the valley. It has been challenged vigorously by the community and gone to appeal. The restoration of the Village Hall is not only seen as an improvement to a communal facility and mustering point for the surrounding community, but as creating a viable stopping point on the A7 route through the Borders up to Edinburgh.

10 11 Maintaining a healthy working population has long been a challenge for rural areas in Dumfries and 3. Area Challenges Galloway. The East Dumfriesshire area is no exception. The area of East Dumfriesshire faces numerous challenges. The severity of them depends on individual Retaining young families can be achieved by two clear means: personal circumstances and/or distinct community conditions. 1. They can have access to work nearby.

The table below is based on data from the 2011 census on the Understanding Scottish Places (Scotland’s 2. They like living there. Towns Partnership) website (www.usp.scot). Precision in Scottish national averages for some of the age categories is diffcult, but the approximations are close. A weighting towards an older population is Attracting employers to the area is a challenge. As has been mentioned, major employers have left an issue for the whole of Scotland. Percentages that are lower or higher than the national average in Langholm over the past 10 years. The solution rests, therefore, in making the place a nice place to live Lockerbie and Langholm are therefore of particular signifcance in this issue. The table is pertinent to and work, especially for those setting up a new business or working from home. But to do that, there the following two sections, Employment and Housing and Transport. must be facilities and services. That is where investment from windfarm community beneft funds might play a role.

Scotland as a Whole Lockerbie Langholm 3.2 Transport Population 5,295,000 4,287 2,227 Car ownership in Lockerbie and Langholm is noticeably higher than the national average. Given that income levels in the area are lower than the average, this is more likely an indicator of the necessity of % aged under 16 17.3 16.2 15.2 transport in a rural area than of wealth. In Lockerbie over 74% of households have access to a car. In Langholm the fgure is just over 73%. In both cases this leaves roughly a quarter who do not own a car % aged 16 - 24 11.4 (approx.) 9.3 7.9 and who therefore rely on public transport or a friend.

% aged 25 - 44 26.3 (approx.) 23.1 21.5 There are no statistics on car ownership for the smaller settlements in the area. The subject was, however, often raised during interviewing and, while it did not feature high on car owners’ concerns, there was % aged 45 - 64 28.2 (approx.) 26.7 30.6 a strong awareness that, if you do not have a car, public transport timetables are often disconnected from being anything near a useful service. % aged 65+ 16.8 (approx.) 24.7 24.8 In smaller communities, the people without cars tend to be the elderly on lower incomes, and the young. For the elderly, coordinating simple (for a car driver) journeys to day centres or doctors’ surgeries can Car ownership 69.0 (approx.) 74.8 73.4 be a real struggle. A trip to and from the hospital in Dumfries can be a nightmare of un-connecting bus rides. Also raised consistently was the inability of young people to get to and from events and activities. If these do not ft in with the work or commitments of their parents or guardians, youngsters are simply unable to attend. An urban mindset might not recognise the diffculty in this but, given the 3.1 Employment and Housing greater distances involved and the remoteness of some of the communities, this does put youngsters living in these areas at a strong disadvantage. Employment in the area depends on where you are. As previously mentioned, Lockerbie presents several opportunities, whereas Langholm has fewer opportunities. In the smaller settlements there is The lack of a decent public transport service is a serious problem. A survey carried out in 2016 by Dumfries some employment, but this is unlikely to alter signifcantly, regardless of any intervention. and Galloway Third Sector First concluded that the most effective change would be to coordinate the timetables to allow better connections between different services. In addition, community-run bus The need for housing is often tied to local employment opportunities. This, though, is not necessarily services are restricted in how they can operate, and they rely on volunteer drivers. They struggle to the full picture in East Dumfriesshire. From the research done, it is evident that: operate in a sustainable manner and as such ongoing subsidy is often needed. But the benefts may 1. Housing related to employment is more signifcant in the west (Lockerbie) area. justify that ongoing subsidy. 2. Housing in the East (Langholm) is less dependent on local employment as more people commute to work (Annan, Dumfries and Carlisle). Of people living in Langholm, 24.8% are aged 65 and 3.3 Social Isolation above (the Scottish national average is 16.8%). Most villages were, within living memory, places in which a larger population of local workers lived. 3. Some housing in the more remote outlying settlements is connected to employment opportunities, They worked on local farms, often part of estates, or other local industries, such as forestry. These but the rest is a mix of lifestyle, retired, second homes and long-term family homes. There is only were in turn dependant on more hands and less machinery than are used now and were supported small evidence of demand for new homes in the smaller settlements. There is evidence, however, by a plethora of local, small-to-medium support services and businesses. These networks are largely that the current housing stock across the area is in need of upgrade. reduced, depleted or gone. Farming now is often a singular or small-family activity, with input from occasional contractors. Other working people tend to drive a distance to and from work. Many Employment across Dumfries and Galloway is patchy. 4. villages used to have pubs, small shops, post offces and garages serving their communities. Far less 5. Regionally, wage levels are low. The average full-time weekly wage in Dumfries and Galloway is do so now. It is suggested as many as two thirds of former church buildings are no longer places of given as £477, while in Scotland as a whole it is £562, and in the UK as a whole it is £571. (Source: worship. Nomis).

12 13 In social terms this shows in a depletion of levels of self-support and congregation. This does not mean that communities have lost the ability to self-support (many in Dumfries and Galloway acted 4. The Consultation Process decisively and quickly to create support systems with the onset of the Covid-19 situation) but many fnd maintaining a strong volunteer base over the long haul to be a challenge. Village Halls are now The key to delivering a meaningful and useful Community Action frequently the only congregating point in a community, with the capacity varying substantially as to Plan is research (understanding the community/area/region); what and how much can be organised there. consultation (fnding out what people need, and to a lesser degree While people who have their own cars - travelling for work, family, shopping and so on - can access what they want); and delivery (Community Action Plans often fail to services, the young, the old, the disabled, the ill, the unemployed, the impoverished and those living in explain how to deliver what is in the Plan). remote parts can fnd themselves isolated. East Dumfriesshire clearly has experience in social isolation. To really ensure understanding the needs of people in the various This issue was raised frequently in the one-to-one conversations as being of serious concern. communities, the consultation was conducted in two parts, using different but linked approaches. The first part involved ’one-to- one interviewing’ with key individuals, groups and partners from 3.4 Homecare Support the fve, inner ‘community districts’ of the Ewe Hill 6 area: Boreland and Hutton, Corrie, Tundergarth (in North Milk); Middlebie and A consequence of these reductions - whether through centralisation, social depletion or fnancial cuts Waterbeck; Langholm, Ewes and Westerkirk. These were taken - is that all kinds of services to, and in, outlying rural areas get thinned out. Mentioned in the one-to-one to represent smaller communities in the East Dumfriesshire area. conversations was the issue of the area’s people who receive care support at home. This support is It is accepted that each community will have its own unique usually provided by carers working from agencies outwith the area, in Annan or Dumfries. circumstances and those who were not talked to directly would Because each care recipient is given a set allocation of time, the carer spends most of that time in have given other ideas. However, experience shows there will also travelling to and from the appointment, rather than in the provision of care. be a good deal of overlap in views. The second part was through a Community Consultation Questionnaire which was posted out by What if a system could be set up whereby local carers might be employed by the agencies? Travel Royal Mail to the three postcode districts that formed the closest time would be greatly reduced, care time would be increased (as would local employment) and the equivalent to the Ewe Hill 16 area. system would enhance the sense of local community. The Consultants tried contacting the region’s homecare support agencies but received no replies. Lacking specifcs to back the issue up, related This Questionnaire was closely informed by the issues which people questions were removed from the Community Questionnaire. This issue, however, could be pursued in raised through the frst part, in the ‘one-to-one’ interviews. the longer term. 4.1 Ewe Hill 6 Area: One-to-One Interviewing 3.5 Internet and Broadband In the consultation, strong store was put in the process called Service in the area varies enormously, from reasonable to almost non-existent. Poor service is not just ‘one-to-one interviewing’. This gives an opportunity for people in an annoyance. It can make the difference between a project being viable or unfeasible. A successful communities to sit down with the Consultants and to go through business in Tundergarth moved its offces to Lockerbie because the internet service was so poor. This a semi structured conversation on a one-to-one basis. An initial illustrates how the issue could be crucial for existing and proposed businesses in the area. explanation was given in an Information Sheet which was sent to participants in the process. ‘During our initial discussions we established the following as key 3.6 Tourism concerns and topics for discussion: Whether in whole landscapes (Black Esk Reservoir or Langholm Moor) or in locations (Tundergarth · Employment Church or Westerkirk Library), there is potential for constructive tourism, but not much infrastructure. In · Environment (walks, environmental protection, comparison to other areas of Dumfries and Galloway, East Dumfriesshire has limited holiday-let options. environmental tourism) Searches on all accommodation listings (Hotel, Self-Catering, B&Bs, Camping and Caravans) on the major accommodation websites produced few results. The Visit South West Scotland website has very · Visitor Attractions (existing and potential, for example few listings for the region and its Langholm and Lockerbie listings are poor. Westerkirk Library) · Transport (school transport, car share, community buses) · Housing (quality, affordable, rental) · Tourism (product existing and potential) · Youth Facilities/Activities · Childcare Support · Rural Isolation (elderly people - activities and support for elderly people)

14 15 · Community Facilities (halls, parks etc.) · Training and Education (bursaries, educational support) 5. Consultation Findings · Health and Well-being (access to health services) · Business Support (business start-up units and training) 5.1 One-to-One Interviews · Long-term re-investment in renewable schemes In the one-to-one interviews, notes were made during the conversations. A lot of detail specifc to each community emerged but very often this also ftted into broader basic themes. The sessions were · Renewable energy projects (home improvements, insulation) then written up and condensed into short approximately 5-page reports. These were based on the main emerging observations and issues, not on naming each interviewee and itemising their opinions. · Legacy Projects v Short-Term (setting yearly budgets to allocate funds to either legacy or small short-term support) The broad themes were: · Internet connection and speeds

· Langholm Moor (a group has been set-up to look at this: it may not be directly relevant: 1. The Administration of Community Benefit Funding however, expressions of support or otherwise might be useful) This included issues around: Legacy versus Short term projects; Whether to reinvest some of the available money into a longer-term more steady-state fund; Whether the money could fund We used these subject headings as the starting point for the one-to-one meeting/s. If there were other community-needed training, education and apprenticeships. subject headings they were added as we progressed.’

2. A Place within an Accessible Landscape 4.2 Wider Community Consultation - the Questionnaire This included issues around the Environment and Tourism: Extending existing walks and routes; From the themes and suggestions emerging in the one-to-one interviews, an 8-page Questionnaire Improving access and amenity to particularly enjoyed features in the landscape; the possibility of was devised. It contained 14 themed topics with 23 associated questions. There were further questions ‘re-wilding’ projects. asking respondents for their views on priorities, and - encouraging participation - for their name and address if they wished to enter for a prize draw. Royal Mail’s policy on delivery of mass ‘mailshots’ is to only distribute to whole postcode areas. The 3. Key Community Services Questionnaire was delivered to three postcode areas: This included issues around: Community Facilities, including how Village Halls are now often the only communal meeting place for their community; Youth Facilities and Services; Transport; Rural Isolation; Internet speeds and services. DG11-2: North Milk, Lockerbie (to the Motorway) and including Tundergarth. DG11-3: Middlebie and Waterbeck, Ecclefechan, Eaglesfeld, Kirkpatrick Fleming and Kirtlebridge. 4. Climate Change and its possibilities and problems DG13-0: The east side of the area including Langholm, Eskdalemuir and Ewes. As well as ideas for electrical car charging points at Village halls and ‘re-wilding’ mentioned in the other themes, this included issues around: Whether there could be long-term reinvestment in renewable schemes; Investment in renewable energy projects; the possibility of improved (eco- quality) housing projects. These settlements cover the core of the East Dumfriesshire area. As explained, Royal Mail will only deliver to full postcode areas, so rather than send the questionnaire to people living outside the eligible area for DECBG’s current grant scheme, this was a compromise. 5,540 questionnaires were delivered. The area included Langholm, Lockerbie, Kirkpatrick Fleming and Ecclefechan, which are the larger 5. The desirability of a ‘shared paid capability’ communities in the wider Ewe Hill 16 area. Many people who were spoken to are involved and practical in their communities. There were 327 questionnaires were returned and collated. Among the 120 people from the Ewe Hill 6 area who concerns about capacity - how any improvements could be done, in a climate where volunteers contributed to the one-to-one interviews which informed the questionnaire, many are likely to have are frequently hard-pressed, even if funding is able to be allocated to a project. returned questionnaires. Taking this into account, the percentage return from the 5,540 questionnaires delivered can be reasonably estimated as being between 6% - 8% of the households in the area to which they were delivered. Calculation from this level of return with this number of questionnaires The results of the one-to-one interviews in these communities are available in the accompanying (www.surveysystem.com/sscalce) gives 90-95% confdence that the views in the community have report, ‘East Dumfriesshire Community Consultation Feedback’. been captured, a reliable number in terms of statistics.

16 17 Question: Do you receive care support at home? 11 yes, 309 no.

Question: Do you have access to private transport? 281 yes, 35 no.

Question: Do you have access to the internet? 294 have access to the Internet, 25 do not.

Question: Do you own your home or is it rented? 246 own their home, 70 rent their home.

Question: Are there young people in your household who might be interested in youth activities? 63 yes, 247 no.

Question: Do you use childcare services? 302 respondents - 21 yes, 281 no.

Question: Are you thinking about further education or training in the future? 47 yes, 256 no.

Three hundred and twenty seven (327) people returned the questionnaire. Not everyone answered all Question: Are you employed or self-employed? questions so not all answers add up to 327. 184 responses - 129 employed, 55 self-employed.

Question: Would you like to be kept informed of Future Development? Question: If you are self-employed, would you be interested in renting a workspace? 278 responses - 203 yes, 75 no. 77 responses - 12 yes, 65 no.

Question: Would you like to talk to the consultants to discuss your ideas? Question: When would you consider renting a workspace? 261 responses – 60 yes, 201 no. As soon as possible 2; In six months 7; In two years 2; Not Sure 5.

Question: Did everyone living in your household take part in filling in the Questionnaire? Question: Would you be interested in joining the DECBG Board if a vacancy arose? 194 yes, 119 no. 45 yes, 237 no.

Question: Do you consider yourself, or are you registered, disabled? A detailed presentation of the responses to the topics in the questionnaire are given in the separate 37 yes, 281 no. document, ‘East Dumfriesshire Community Consultation Feedback’.

18 19 5.2 Further Analysis of Feedback - The Most Popular Ideas 5.3 Method of Analysis

The responses in the Questionnaire confrm and extend themes, concerns, opinions and suggestions After an initial scan to identify the seven major project areas, each of the 886 project ideas that were that emerged in the one-to-one interviewing. From them it is possible to construct an approach to in scope were scored against these groups. It was a fairly subjective process and, with so many ideas, the needs expressed and form a possible programme for action overall and programmes for activity there were many times when there was not a direct ‘ft’. To accommodate this, the main heading with in the individual communities. the best ‘ft’ received 3 points, a secondary one 2 points and, if a third was necessary, 1 point. There is a further perspective which needs to be addressed in this Plan. That is to try and identify key, As an example, an idea suggesting ‘Making the most of the outdoors (Cycle Routes)’ scored 3 in longer-term themes which may require windfarm beneft support in the future. Environment, 2 in Healthy Living and 1 in Tourism. On the whole, most of the ideas fell into one main heading. All the data in this exercise is available on request to DECBG. Using the survey data - primarily the responses in the section, ‘Your Ideas …(Please can you list your top fve projects that you would like to see happen?)’ - it is possible to identify: This gave a total points score for each heading, falling into three groups, with infrastructure far and away higher than the rest. The next two bands were closer but had a clear distinction between the bands. A cross check, weighting the ideas by whether they were a priority one for the respondent or 7 major project themes priority fve had no effect on the overall result. 34 project ideas within the themes Major Project Themes Score Infrastructure 234 There were 909 separate project ideas to consider, reduced to 886, after duplicates and unusable ideas were discarded. Information from the interviews, although useful in showing the general ‘shape’ Healthy Living 90 of peoples’ thoughts, did not add much in the way of extra specifc project ideas. Transport 58 Environment 57 The seven major areas can be grouped into three bands of priorities: Tourism 45 1. Infrastructure - which includes both physical (buildings etc) and organisational ( project Eco Effciency 28 development workers, youth workers etc) concerns Community Cohesion 27 2. Healthy Living (which includes Training and Education), Environmment and Transport For reference, the ‘Out of Scope’ projects scored 80. This suggests that there is a signifcant gap 3. Eco Efficiency, Tourismand Community Cohesion between what the community would like and what the windfarm funds can currently achieve. Examples of such projects include road repairs (which as a statutory local authority duty are outside the Many of the 886 ideas fell into a group called ‘Out of Scope’, which means the idea is reasonable but scope of windfarm funds), flood defences (again, a statutory duty elsewhere), provision of childcare falls outwith what windfarm beneft funding can deliver, on either a fnancial or a limited remit basis. support (very diffcult to make this a community-wide beneft) and request for the provision of another That does not matter as the Plan is an expression of need and other funders or agencies may take supermarket (neither fnancially feasible nor, as a commercial enterprise, within the scope). note of these thoughts and ideas. The next step was to create a much longer list of headings. For these, each idea could only go into one heading:

20 21 This analysis cannot give Project Ideas Ideas in Heading any perspective on the 6. The Action Plan Sports Facilities 84 qualitative aspects in proposed projects. It does, Community Transport 79 however, give a sense of the A Community Action Plan is only relevant if it is achievable. Community Facilities 72 ‘spectrum’ of interests in the While the Plan has been commissioned by DECBG, it is an expression of the needs of communities whole area at the present across East Dumfriesshire. Underlying the study is the fact that the communities have access to an Develop Businesses 55 time. increasing amount of funding derived from windfarms. The aspirations and ideas expressed through Youth Facilities 48 The data can be analysed the survey need to be turned into actions. That is a job for everyone in the community and the hope Tourism - general 47 in many ways. This is is that anyone with an idea will be able to use this report and Action Plan to develop their idea and only one of them, but it Internet Provision 41 justify getting funding. Some of the funding might come from DECBG, some from community councils helps in identifying where or other community bodies handling funds on behalf of their communities. In the main actions will be Training / Education 41 community-led priorities taken forward by individuals and community groups. for the future might lie. The Energy Effciency 40 priorities identifed could Under-pinning achievability is the issue of capacity. Most Plans that fail, fail because the community Environment - general 37 help in assessing funding did not have the capacity to develop or deliver the projects. Capacity takes many forms but initially applications, whether it is we are referring to people. Roads 30 to DECBG or other beneft Walking Paths / Cycleways 30 funds. Examples of community groups employing project workers are numerous and rarely are these appointments a failure. The East Dumfriesshire area is fortunate in that it already has several experienced Funding Structure 28 More detail of individual ideas groups that deliver a range of services especially in the Langholm area. As such, rather than re-invent Project Worker 27 is given in the document, ‘East the wheel, it makes sense to support these groups to deliver projects identifed in the Community Dumfriesshire Community Action Plan. Elderly Care 26 Consultation Feedback’. Redevelop Existing Infrastructure / Heritage 21 However, some projects will need additional logistical and organisational support and smaller communities need assistance to identify suitable projects, develop a plan for them, apply for funding Childcare 20 and get the project up and running. This approach is supported by a large majority of people who Children’s Facilities 17 responded to the consultation. (See the responses to Questions 3, 4 and 7 in particular). Improve Town Appearances 13 Flood Defence 12 Inclusivity 11 Reduce Isolation 11 Healthcare 9 Arts-Related Projects 7 Provision for Electric Vehicles 7 Wildlife 7 Woodland 7 Eco-Tourism 4 Large Out-of-Scope Project 4 Schools 4 Camping / Caravan Facilities 3 Events 3 Religious Groups 3 Local Food 1 Total Ideas Considered 886

Photo credit: Dougie Johnston 22 23 6.1 East Dumfries Community Manager (EDCM) Key Message Engaging support staff creates the capacity to deliver the Community Action Plan. Although To take projects forward, it is suggested that the Dumfriesshire East Community Beneft Group either such a post is expensive the return will be justifed as the Creetown Initiative example above employ a Project Offcer or engage an organisation to provide Project Offcer support, particularly demonstrates. DECBG’s constitution allows the employment of staff. It is recommended that to the smaller communities across East Dumfriesshire. This post is, effectively, a Shared Community DECBG take the initiative to make this happen. Development Worker. This proposal received 82% support. Regarding capacity and the ability to deliver the Community Action Plan, it is recommended that this post is the number-one priority. As mentioned before, this post could deliver projects whilst helping to manage and monitor other projects being delivered by partners 6.2 Next Steps The community consultation process has highlighted the key community priorities for the coming years. Not all will be achievable at once, but a very clear need has been expressed to get support to help Case Study: Community Development Officer projects get off the ground and implemented.

Previously relying on volunteers and slow progress, Creetown Initiative engaged a community For that reason, DECBG and the affected communities will consider how best to provide a Community development offcer in 2006. Once the offcer was taken on, projects started to move forward at Manager role. This is the frst key step. a pace. To date the group has, within Creetown, restored 4 buildings and a play park, started a The priorities identifed will be shared with all the relevant funding bodies, including the Community youth programme now in its 12th year; started a car share scheme, a bee conservation project, Councils, to assist them in allocating funds that are almost inevitably oversubscribed. By having a a lottery funded elderly support programme and much more. In total over £4m has been secured shared view of priorities for the future, a process aided by the Community Project Manager, there for projects since 2006. Creetown Initiative currently provide project offcer support to three should be greater clarity about accessing funds and transparency in how they are used. communities in South Ayrshire. The beneft to these communities is that they get an experienced project worker who has organisational support behind them; the community group do not have Those who have contributed ideas through the consultation process, those thinking of projects and to line manage or employ staff; and the engagement period can be flexible. funders considering how to allocate funds are encouraged to refer to the ideas in the accompanying document ‘East Dumfriesshire Community Consultation Feedback’.

The postholder could be employed by DECBG, or through a partner organisation such as Southern Uplands Partnership, Creetown Initiative or a similar group. 6.3 Project Costs The post, however, is critical. For reference this post is being referred to as East Dumfries Community The listed themes and the projects within them have emerged from community discussion and Manager (EDCM). consultation and the Action Plan showing how they might be carried forward. None of them are unreasonable nor, as examples show, without precedent. Many similar projects are happening Alongside the post it is envisaged that a range of groups will be engaged to deliver projects. These elsewhere in Scotland under similar conditions. groups might simply apply for funds to DECBG or other fund holders to deliver projects independently, or they might be commissioned by DECBG or others to deliver or support projects from the Action In many cases more development work will be required before an accurate, detailed cost can be Plan. In some cases, groups are already delivering projects similar to what has been identifed through established for any project seeking funding and that includes project proposals not mentioned during the consultation and in the Action Plan - for example XCEL Youth Trust is delivering youth projects the consultation and so not featured in this Regional Community Plan. and activities in Langholm - so it might be commissioned to expand its services to the wider East It is important that the community take on board the concept of matched funding – the attitude that Dumfriesshire region. Whichever route is chosen, the EDCM will be responsible for developing an whatever funding is available through windfarm funding can be extended through the involvement of operational programme arising from the consultation responses and subsequently ensuring the delivery other funders and interested partner organisations. This is a matter of maximising funding, but it is also of the Actions. The operational programme and actions will be agreed with DECBG and progress will one of essential collaborative working with committed, available expertise. be reported to the board of DECBG. Likewise, the EDCM could be the contact on behalf of DECBG with other organisations such as Visit South West Scotland, the local destination management organisation who support tourism initiatives 6.4 Project Match Funding in the region, and develop partnerships with other organisations delivering projects that might be While windfarm community beneft funds are substantial – and are likely to become more substantial – benefcial to the area.. The EDCM will help community members and groups with developing ideas, on their own they will rarely be able to meet the requirements of larger aspirations. This Action Plan also applications and the setting up of contracts or agreements and monitor progress, reporting on them needs to identify the best ways to maximise windfarm beneft funding. As well as identifying specifc to DECBG’s board. projects, the Plan is also designed to illustrate how windfarm beneft funds can be used to attract or This is a key post. It is suggested that it is full-time and paid at an appropriate rate in line with other lever additional funds, especially where major expense projects are concerned. The following tables Community Manager roles. With lessons learned from Covid-19, however, this post might be a home- give details of other funders and how they might assist in the future. based post, removing the need for an offce, or, if an organisation is engaged to supply the post, it may The tables have been broken into 3 sections, Revenue (Core) Funding, Capital Funding and Project have existing premises. It would be good practice to encourage as little travel as possible. (Activity) Funding. Some funders will support all three types of funding and as such are repeated in each table. This is not an exhaustive list but it is an example of possible match funders. Monitoring funding after the impact of COVID-19 should be a priority and ongoing task for the EDCM.

24 25 Revenue (Core) Funding Capital Funding

Deadline for Deadline for Name of Funder Amount Notes Contact Details Name of Funder Amount Notes Contact Details Submission Submission The Holywood Over 4 times a year Application is a 01387 269176 Holywood Trust Over 4 times a year Application is a 01387 269176 Trust £2,500, 2-stage application. [email protected] £2,500, 2-stage application. [email protected] no A grant enquiry www.holywood-trust.org.uk no A grant enquiry www.holywood-trust.org.uk upper form followed by a upper form followed by a limit full application form. limit full application form. The Robertson Up to Rolling programme Community 0141 353 7300 The National Over Applications closed Online application. www.heritagefund.org.uk Trust £75,000 Building Grants - for [email protected] Lottery Heritage £3,000 at present due to 0207 591 6000 community ‘hubs’ www.therobertsontrust.org.uk Fund Covid-19.Expected to reopen October. CRH Trust Up to Rolling programme Application by letter Brodies LLP, 15 Atholl Crescent, £50,000 Edinburgh, EH3 8HA Robert Barr £1,000 - Rolling application Application is by Robert Barr’s Charitable Trust, Charitable Trust £30,000 – can be submitted letter. No more than SC007613, Dentons UK and Middle KPE4 Charitable Up to Rolling programme Application by letter c/o Morton Fraser LLP, Quartermile any time 2 sides A4 East LLP, 1 George Square, Glasgow, Trust £25,000 Two, 2 Lister Square, Edinburgh, EH3 G2 1AL 9GL James T Howat £1,000 - Rolling application Application is by James T Howat Charitable Trust, Charitable Trust £5,000 – can be submitted letter. No more than Harper Macleod LLP, The Ca’d’oro, any time 2 sides A4 45 Gordon Street. Glasgow, G1 3PE Project (Activity) Funding Robertson Trust £2,000 - Rolling application Online application Telephone: 0141 353 7300 Deadline for £15,000 – can be submitted Email: funding@therobertsontrust. Name of Funder Amount Notes Contact Details Submission any time org.uk or Website: www.therobertsontrust.org. The Weatherall Up to Rolling programme Application by letter Gillespie Gifford and Brown LLP uk £5,000 135 Irish Street Dumfries DG1 2NT £15,000 - Ronald Miller Up to Rolling programme Application by letter Dentons UK and Middle East LLP, 1 £50,000 Foundation £5,000 George Square, Glasgow, G2 1AL Martin Connell £1,000 - Rolling application; Application is by Martin Connell Charitable Trust, Lady Eda Up to Rolling programme Application by letter Anderson Strathern, 1 Rutland Charitable Trust £10,000 can be submitted letter. No more than Dentons UK and Middle East LLP, 1 Jardine £5,000 Court, Edinburgh, EH3 8EY any time 2 sides A4 George Square, Glasgow, G2 1AL Charitable Trust The Orcome £1,000 - Rolling application; The Orcome Trust. John Kennedy, The Orcome Up to Rolling application; Download from The Orcome Trust. John Kennedy, Trust £10,000 can be submitted Chairman john.kennedy@newhalls. Trust £5,000 can be submitted website Chairman john.kennedy@ any time co.uk any time newhalls.co.uk Website www.orcometrust.org.uk Website www.orcometrust.org.uk W M Sword £1,000 - Rolling application; Application is by W M Sword Charitable Trust, C/o Awards for All Up to Rolling programme Online application https://www.tnlcommunityfund. Charitable Trust £20,000 can be submitted letter. No more than Henderson Loggie, The Vision £10,000 org.uk/funding/programmes/ any time 2 sides A4 Building, 20 Greenmarket, Dundee, DD1 4QB Wilmcot 70 - £3,600 Rolling programme Applications made Mr Graham Beach The Hugh Fraser Up to Rolling application; Application is by 180 St Vincent Street, Glasgow , DG2 Charitrust (average in writing Warren Chase, Billesley Road, Foundation £15,000 can be submitted letter 5SG grant £500) Wilmcote, Stratford-upon-Avon, any time CV37 9XG The Murdoch Up to Rolling application; Application is by Henderson Loggie, Ground Floor, 11 - 01789298472 Forrest £20,000 can be submitted letter 15 Thistle Street, Edinburgh, EH2 1DF [email protected] Charitable Trust any time Graham Up to Rolling programme Application by letter Tayview House, Oak Road, Princes Up to Rolling application; Application is by Princes Exchange, 1 Earl Grey Street, Stephen £5,000 Dunkeld, Perthshire, PH8 0BL Exchange £10,000 can be submitted letter Edinburgh, EH3 9EE Charitable Trust Foundation any time Lottery Funding Not covered in the above tables is the National Lottery Community Funds. These funds deserve special mention and a range of different funds are available through the Lottery. At present there are no major capital funds, with Community Assets currently under review, although other Lottery funded bodies, such as the Heritage Lottery Fund, do support capital projects. The Lottery does however have a number of other programmes such as Community Led and Young Start. The EDCM should monitor all Lottery programmes and be thoroughly familiar with the workings of the National Lottery Community Fund.

26 27 One of the area’s problems is capacity. There is a strong need for co-ordination and access to further advice and guidance. Therefore, the strong support for a post - East Dumfries Community Manager 7. Conclusion (EDCM) - is a practical way of co-ordinating good intentions, efforts, and skill. A Plan like this does not ‘tell you how to spend the money’. There is far too much variation in community aspirations, too many ideas at different stages of development, too much uncertainty, too many needs. The Plan does however show much more clearly how people in the area are thinking and the 7.1 Opportunities and Challenges kind of things that might help address their aspirations. It can be used by those seeking to justify the allocation of funds to their projects and by funders to look at areas of activity on which they need to The purposes of this consultation and plan have been to: focus.

Capture what attitudes, thoughts, opinions, reservations and proposals people in the East Dumfriesshire area have around key strands that can be supported by windfarm community 7.2 Comments on the Management of Funds beneft funding and how they feel about the delivery of this funding; The essence of the one-to-one conversations was to hear how it is for involved local people – those bringing up families, working, committed to projects, sitting on committees, organising events, wanting Identify what kind of projects could be supported within individual communities; and to see improvements, caring about the place in which they live - and what they want to see supported with windfarm community beneft funding. Identify what kind of more strategic project could be supported in the wider East Dumfriesshire area; An important aspect of this is how they see the general situation around windfarm community beneft funding. What frequently came through in the conversations was more uncertain, more apprehensive Develop from this feedback and achievable programme of delivery; but also showed more awareness than had been anticipated. DECBG was set up - at least initially - to handle the Ewe Hill funds. One of its tasks is to simply pass Defne, if possible, themes that may be more strategic and deliverable over a longer period. some funds direct to individual Community Councils or relevant community groups. Minsca funds have always gone directly to community bodies. A few suggestions as to how communication to Built into the situation in the East Dumfriesshire area are strengths, ambiguities, and diffculties. and from DECBG could be handled more clearly were expressed, but there was not sharp criticism The strengths include resourceful and communicative (once they are asked) people who are thoughtful of the overall organisation. Indeed, people with experience of the Ewe Hill 6 process are generally and willing to air issues facing their communities and suggest possible ways of improving the quality complementary. Those who have read the Grant Information Sheet on the Ewe Hill 16 process are of life in their area. Another strength is the presence of quite a wide range of existing if austerity- sometimes confused by it. For instance, asking them to suggest possible long term, legacy projects, depleted, experienced services. seems at odds with the information that funding will not be countenanced for longer than three years. However, a few adjustments to layout and some more considered wording here and there - maybe in Projects can be encouraged but not forced. They appear in their own time when people involved have the light of this consultation - should allow clarifcations and changes in guidance to cope with most identifed a solution to a need and developed a proposal – all of which then have to be demonstrated of these confusions. to funders. The real apprehensions are in a developing wider context. From the point of view of a member of The diffculties include the fact that, even though the presence of the windfarm community beneft a village community, looking out for avenues for funding, they sometimes fnd it hard to distinguish funding is a signifcant strand of funding which is not available in many parts of the country, it will between one provider of windfarm community beneft funding and another. So, people are confusing never be enough to cope with all the needs that are put before DECBG or other bodies holding protocols with different providers, in a situation that is, at the same time, seeing more and more such funds. Another diffculty is that the whole situation around windfarm planning, construction and windfarms sprouting across the hills. The questions are, from their point of view: ‘Which way are we resultant community beneft is remarkably inconsistent, so that it is hard to know not only the level of to turn?’ ‘How do we get clear what the protocols are?’ ‘Just how many providers are there going to funding which may become DECBG’s responsibility in the future, but also how windfarms in the wider be?’ ‘How can we fnd agreed purpose in this diversity?’ ‘How do we ensure that the opportunities are area, outwith DECBG’s responsibility, will organise themselves. Not knowing quite what regulations will not wasted?’ pertain, nor what level of funding will be available, makes long-term realistic planning and costing much harder. In addition, Covid-19 has turned the world upside down - the impact on grant funding While current funding in the area is from the Ewe Hill and Minsca windfarms, there is growing complexity is an illustration of just how tangible the wider effects of Covid-19 are. The normal, with regards to in the source of funds. People also mentioned other windfarm projects in the region – proposed, funding, is unlikely to return for some time. Indeed, as this is being written a second wave looks like a planned, pending or under construction – almost in the same breath. Here is a list of the names of all strong possibility. As such, planning for projects must recognise Covid-19 and plan accordingly. those sites which were mentioned: This Plan is based on a wealth of insight that has come through from people in the area’s communities. (1) Minsca, (2) Ewe Hill, (3) Crossdykes, (4) Little Hart Fell, (5) Scoop Hill, (6) Loganhead, (7) Hopsrig, Sometimes this has not been quite what might have been anticipated. When one interviewee pointed (8) Craig, (9) Craig Extension, (10) Faw Side, (11) Solwaybank out, in effect, that communities generally do not own much land - so how could they be expected to It is not diffcult to see how this list will change the complexion of the current situation fundamentally. suggest ambitious property-based projects - it became clear that it was much less likely that suggestions It will do so fairly soon. People wanted to know how DECBG will position itself as this situation evolves. would spring out fully formed for orderly listing. What has been possible, though, is to get a ‘spectrum of themes’, to build a wider vision of needs than might be possible by just responding to whatever Obviously, it will probably lead to substantially more money – indeed suffcient to render Ewe Hill funding proposal happens to come out of the hat at application time. This, in itself, is very useful. a small part of the overall picture, but would it also be compromised by a proliferation of confusion?

28 29 Other questions arose: Would people in the community be faced, before long, with multiple avenues for applications? Would there be consistency of protocols? On the other hand, some people were apprehensive about a single body taking control of and dominating all applications – even if that is only marginally likely with so many different providers involved. These apprehensions need to be taken on board if a genuinely useful understanding for the future is to be developed. At the other end of the process, when an application is being or has been made, people in the one-to- one interviews expressed the need for more sympathetic guidance and communication. (Some larger funding bodies like LEADER (for all its convolutions) and the Lottery are good at this). This means that people wanted some greater support in building their cases and in the creative fnding of matched funding on the one hand, and, on the other, when an application has failed, better communication as to why, and to how their projects might be developed better into the future. There does not seem to be a great awareness on the part of applicants of just how small the team is that administers the Ewe Hill funding, but an awareness of this diffculty is important now for the future. As the situation around windfarm community beneft funding involves larger sums and grows in complexity, so those making applications are going to need more support if clarity and fairness are to be sustained. This is where the EDCM post should be useful. Not everyone can be adept in the detail of making funding applications nor in keeping up with the climate in what looks to become - whatever the opportunities - a complicated situation. While windfarm companies often consult with communities on how funds are to be shared and with whom, different companies take different approaches, making it diffcult for the communities to coordinate their voluntary efforts to best effect. One future action that would address this confusion is to at least maintain a central log describing where funds are held. Another one would be to seek to get greater coherence and co-ordination within the whole issue. Attempting this will not be straightforward and may well be beyond the direct capacity of DECBG or its offcers.

7.3 A Longer-Term Vision

This leads to the search for a longer-term vision. There are windfarms now in many of the hills and rural parts of Scotland. Similar kinds of confusion and diversities of delivery are happening elsewhere. Likewise, the kinds of project that have featured in the consultation are also similar. This does not mean a lack of imagination. These are the needs that people in rural areas want to see addressed – and are likely to want to see addressed for some time to come. Every now and again a project arises that is innovative and unexpected. This usually is the result of the real experience and drive of strong individuals responding to particular needs and working hard to convince funders. Such projects rarely come from the bodies that administer the funds. Nevertheless, while it was not a theme that was addressed by even a majority of consultees, there was a strong undertow of ‘future thinking’ from a wide variety of people. This was around the need to seriously embrace the adjustments needed in our communities as climate change approaches. Beyond political alignments and movements, it was recognised that this is becoming an immediate need, and one that will increase in the approaching years. Setting the sails around this will touch on every theme outlined in this Plan – but in new ways. Encouraging practicality, awareness, innovation, creative action and good courage around this issue within our communities will be an essential thing to do.

30 31 Dumfries East Community Benefit Group

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