Sir,
I recently applied, on behalf of Carradale play park, to Argyll and Bute Council’s sustainable community initiative fund. A summary of the fund, as stated on the application form, is as follows: ‘A budget of a maximum total of £50,000 has been allocated by the council for community councils, constituted community groups and third sector groups to bid for up to a maximum of £5,000 for projects which provide community benefits and are long-term sustainable grant applications.’
I was shocked and disappointed to receive an immediate rejection by email, which stated that we don’t apparently meet the criteria. The exact reasons given were as follows: ‘The fund differs from the regular council community fund and has been made available from roads and amenity services to assist with grounds maintenance, initiatives to tackle dog fouling and beach/litter cleans.’