The first half of 2023 has seen Bristol Airport’s Local Community Fund support local community projects to the tune of £170,000.
More than 50 individual projects have benefited from the Fund, with grants so far this year ranging from £500 to £15,000. These include funding for a nature conservation project in the village of Wrington, car park improvements at Goblin Combe in Cleeve, and children's educational equipment for Winford Village Pre-School. In total, £1.5 million has been granted to projects in the surrounding community of Bristol Airport since the fund was set up in 2012.
The management committee, which oversees Bristol Airport’s Local Community Fund, meets on a quarterly basis to discuss and make a decision on all applied projects. The independently chaired committee members include representatives of the airport and North Somerset Council.
The Fund’s purpose is to help mitigate the impact of the airport’s operations and to give something back to surrounding communities who are situated in close proximity to the airport. Projects which could be eligible for support include initiatives to improvements to transport infrastructure, measures to reduce community severance, nature conservation, educational projects and local sustainability initiatives.
Wrington Parish Council received £4,375 towards the Wrington Quarry Nature Reserve, a conservation project which aims to turn an unmanaged and overgrown woodland area into a local nature reserve. Project leader Tony Harden said: “It was fantastic news when we heard that we had been successful in our application to the Bristol Airport Local Community Fund. The £4,375 that we received has provided the foundations for the footpath, new steps and banisters, insect habitats and a campfire.”
Image: Bristol Airport
