Wingrove’s Labour Councillors have helped pioneer the area’s resident-led environmental improvement initiative, Greening Wingrove.
The Big Lottery has awarded Greening Wingrove almost £1 million! This is to spend over the next five years under the Lottery’s Communities Living Sustainably scheme.
We are one of only 12 places across England to be awarded funding, against very strong competition.
The Greening Wingrove scheme will find practical ways to deal with the impact of climate change on a local level, such as:
Saving money on home and business energy costs, cutting everyone’s carbon footprint
Home insulation, collective buying of electricity and gas
Saving money on food by more local growing for cheaper and healthier eating, and holding food festivals to share ideas and tips.
There will be a Community Innovation Fund each year, inviting bids from residents and community groups to try out their own ideas. And a Sustainability Centre where we can learn to grow food, save money on warming and lighting their homes, reducing energy and water waste, recycling and re-using household items, and many other things.
Up to 10 ‘Community Champions’ will be recruited and trained each year to offer advice and support for sustainable living.
Greening Wingrove is a resident-led partnership covering Spital Tongues, New Mills, Places for People, the Arthur’s Hill and Wingrove Road terraces, the Milvain estate and other streets from Curtis Road and Nuns Moor Road to Fowberry Crescent and Bourne Avenue.
Its partners in the Lottery programme are The Time Exchange, The Co-operative, Newcastle City Council, Newcastle University and the BECON project that works with black and ethnic minority communities. The Workers’ Educational Association (WEA) is the lead partner for managing the funding.