Local projects benefit from West of Orkney Windfarm support

 

A number of projects across Caithness, Sutherland, and Orkney are making a real difference in their communities, thanks to funding from the West of Orkney Windfarm.

In 2022 the developer set up a small donations fund, offering up to £1000 each towards worthwhile programmes in the far north. The fund has proved extremely popular, and last year 24 organisations benefitted from the windfarm’s support.

Projects which received a boost in 2024 range from Mikeysline, an initiative to set up a mental health ‘Hive’ in Thurso, to a project by Dunnet Community Forest to improve the quality of meadows through the use of traditional scythes.

Other recipients include community theatre group Thurso Players, the Orkney Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Club, Kirkwall Grammar School Senior Netball Team, The Halkirk Motor Museum, Caithness Environmental Volunteers and Wick High School Radio Club.

[Full list at the bottom of the release.]

Stuart McAuley, Project Director at the West of Orkney Windfarm said:

“Our donations programme is just one small way in which we can support some of the many valuable initiatives in Caithness, Sutherland and Orkney. In every case we have been immensely impressed by the passion and professionalism each organisation brings, whether their focus is on sport, the arts, social care, education or the environment, and we hope the funds we provide help them achieve their goals.”

About some of the organisations

Mikeysline has been established to offer mental health support to adults and young people across the north of Scotland and have set up a ‘Hive’ in Thurso – a safe space for people to come to receive one-to-one support from trained support workers every week.  

Mikeysline support worker Donna Murray said: “Mikeysline is incredibly grateful to the West of Orkney Windfarm for the generous donation that we received. It allowed us to respond to the demand of our peer support service at Thurso Hive by increasing the available appointments from three to six within the first six months of being in Caithness.”

The Dunnet Community Forest aims to promote the conservation, restoration and improvement of the woodlands around Dunnet Bay, Caithness, for public benefit.

Garance Warburton from the trust said: "Ten people across the north of Scotland have been trained in the use and maintenance of scythes and have completed an introduction to meadow management course. Thanks to the funding provided by the West of Orkney Windfarm, this team of people have access to a scythe library which  means they can implement their training for the benefit of species at risk of extinction, for the benefit of forest users, and for their own health and wellbeing.

“Making environmentally friendly tools such as scythes accessible in this way provides equity of opportunity to people who may not otherwise be able to afford them and allows us to support the work of other environmentally focused groups in our area."

Lukas Princ from the Orkney Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Club said: “The donation by West of Orkney allowed the Orkney Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Club to open up additional subsidised classes and expose the various benefits of combat sports to a wider audience. The sport helps in supporting mental wellbeing, social inclusion and provides an effective outlet for varied groups of people.”

Mary Legg, Caithness Environment Volunteers, said: "The grant we received from West of Orkney Windfarm has covered our essential running costs for the year which enables us to continue contributing to environmental work across the county. Our monthly work parties provide opportunities for people to participate in a diverse array of conservation focused activity, from building bridges and planting trees to improving species habitat. We welcome new members to our sessions which are informal, friendly and offer a great way to socialise, stay fit and healthy and contribute to a better environment."

Lorraine Eyre, Chairperson at Halkirk Heritage and Vintage Motor Society said: “As inheritors of old premises that have suffered decades of neglect, we found that repair is necessary throughout!  The West of Orkney funding towards the job of painting and repairing the exterior and the window frames was a great help.  Not only has the work improved the fabric of the building but also rescued it from becoming an eyesore on one of the main streets in the village.

Chris Aitken, Wick High School’s computing science teacher, who runs the Wick High School Radio Club said: “Our club aims to give our students the opportunity to become licenced amateur radio operators. To do this we provide practical experiences in all aspects of amateur radio as well as tutoring in order to pass the industry recognised Foundation exam, which is an entry point into becoming a licenced amateur in the UK.

“We are so grateful to West of Orkney Windfarm supporting the Wick High School Radio Club. The enthusiasm for amateur radio is building and it is in a large way due to the support we have received from the renewables industries in Caithness.”

Morag Ewing, one of the netball staff supporting Kirkwall Grammar School Senior Netball Team said:

“We have taken part in The Scottish Schools Netball Competition for a number of years – our team won the competition in 2023. As reigning champions, we were desperate to take part again in 2024. Funding is a huge issue for us and often the girls have to play a qualifying match after a night on the boat.

“We reached the final again this year and only had a week to arrange for our girls and coaching staff to get to Glasgow.  The West of Orkney Windfarm provided enough sponsorship to enable the girls to fly down to the final where they defended their title and won the Scottish Schools' Netball cup for the second year in a row.

“A huge thank you from all the netballers at KGS. Sponsorship like this is vital to our development.”

More applicants sought

The West of Orkney Windfarm is being developed around 30km off the west coast of Orkney and around 25km from the north Sutherland coast. With an expected capacity of around 2GW, and first power scheduled by 2030, the project will be capable of powering the equivalent of more than two million homes.

It is being developed by a joint venture comprising Corio Generation, TotalEnergies and Renewable Infrastructure Development Group (RIDG).

In addition to the local donations scheme, the windfarm developers have kick-started a number of other initiatives in Caithness, Sutherland and Orkney including a £1 million research and development programme being led by EMEC in Orkney, a £1.2m education initiative led by UHI, a £125,000 Fit 4 Renewables scheme led by ORE Catapult and £50,000 to support local apprentices in Caithness and north Sutherland.

Local organisations interested in applying for a donation should fill in an online application form which can be found at https://www.westoforkney.com/communities

Applications are encouraged for activities including (but not restricted to):

·       Education in science, technology, engineering, maths (STEM) and the environment

·       Social enterprises or initiatives

·       The arts

Organisations which secured a donation in 2024 are:

·       Halkirk United Football Club

·       Orkney Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

·       Stenness Community Association SCIO

·       Bower School Parent Forum

·       Flow Country Rivers Trust

·       Wick High School Radio Club

·       Inclusive Orkney

·       Kirkwall Grammar School Senior Netball Team

·       Caithness Environment Volunteers

·       Fèis Air An Oir

·       Pennyland Primary School

·       Mikeysline

·       Stenness Community School

·       Dounby Primary School

·       Dunnet Forestry Trust

·       Halkirk Community Sports Foundation

·       Thurso Bowling Club

·       Move Orkney dance studio

·       Halkirk Heritage & Vintage Motor Society

·       Greener Orkney

·       Clan Cancer Support

·       Stromness Sailing Club

·       Thurso Players

·       Creativity in Care