The River Forth Fisheries Trust is delighted to announce it has bagged £2,000 from a Tesco funding scheme.
Tesco teamed up with Groundwork to launch its Bags of Help funding initiative, which sees grants – raised from the 5p bag levy – being awarded to thousands of local community projects every year. Greenspace Scotland is working with Groundwork to provide support to communities in Scotland.
Millions of shoppers voted in stores up and down the country. And it can now be revealed River Forth Fisheries Trust has been awarded £2,000.
Work will now begin on bringing the project to life.
The project will allow the Trust to continue to provide vital support to the communities along the Allan Water in their efforts to tackle the giant hogweed problem. Giant hogweed has toxic sap which can cause severe blisters if it comes into contact with skin and UV light. Communities up and down the river have been working together, coordinated by the Trust to tackle the problem. Giant hogweed however takes a long time to get on top of due to the seeds being able to last in the soil for upwards of 15 years. This project will provide support via staff time, equipment and chemical to communities to help them tackle the problem.
Amy Fergusson – Invasive Species Project Officer, said: it’s fantastic that Tesco had chosen our project to be put to the vote at the local Tesco stores and even more so that the community have come out in force to support the project by voting for us. Giant hogweed is a real problem along the Allan Water and can affect anyone who uses the river, that includes anglers, dog walkers, cyclists and more. Through this project, we plan to continue to support the community by providing them the resource to tackle the problem, this is a long-term problem which the community have geared up to tackle. I would like to thank everyone who has voted for us and if you would like to get involved with this project and to tackle giant hogweed, please contact me by emailing or calling 0131 445 1527.
Tony McElroy, Tesco’s Head of Communications in Scotland, said:
“Bags of Help has been a fantastic success. We’ve been overwhelmed by the response from our customers. The great thing about Bags of Help is that local people are invited to decide how the money will be spent in their community. We can’t wait to see the projects come to life.”
Voting ran in stores throughout May and June with customers choosing which local project they would like to get the top award using a token given to them at the check-out.
Since launching in 2015, Bags of Help has awarded more than £33 million across more than 6,300 local projects.
Tesco customers will get the chance to vote for three different groups each time they shop. Every other month, when votes are collected, three groups in each of Tesco’s regions will be awarded funding.
Bags of Help criteria have recently been extended to include any project that benefits the community. Previously the scheme funded outdoor projects only.
Emma Halliday, Community Enabler Coordinator at greenspace Scotland, said:
“Bags of Help continues to fund thousands of projects across the UK. We want to ensure that the money raised benefits as many local people in as many different places as possible so we’ve extended the range of groups and projects that we can support.
“The scale and variety of activities supported by Bags of Helps shows what can be achieved when communities are given the support and the encouragement they need to make change happen in their local area.”
Funding is available to community groups and charities looking to fund local projects that bring benefits to communities. Anyone can nominate a project and organisations can apply online. To find out more visit www.tesco.com/bagsofhelp
