The Spagan Community Fund

About this fund

The Spagan Fund has been supporting community initiatives on Barra and Vatersay since 2018. The Board of Coimhearsnachd Bharraidh agus Bhatarsaidh Ltd has now engaged Foundation Scotland to help develop the approach to distributing the community fund.

A total of £60,000 in funding was available to the community in 2026, with funding requests accepted between £1,000 to £15,000.  In addition there was one award of £50,000 to celebrate the 21st birthday of CBaB.

The Spagan Community Fund is now closed until 2027. 

As the Board of CBaB and Foundation Scotland continue to review the funding process, further improvements will be introduced over time.

Purpose of this fund

The purpose of the Fund remains to support the work of community organisations serving the community of Barra and Vatersay.  

Grants may support a wide range of costs, such as equipment, events, running costs and the maintenance or refurbishment of community facilities. 

Who can apply?

Groups wishing to apply for funding must be registered members of Coimhearsnachd Bharraidh agus Bhatarsaidh Ltd. Please contact them directly if you need to register or would like to check your status before applying to the fund - marina@barra-vatersay.org.uk.

The application form for membership can be found here.

Community groups and organisations working to benefit people in the area of benefit and which meet Foundation Scotland’s standard eligibility criteria can apply. Applicants must have a constitution and be set up on a not-for-profit basis. They do not need to be a registered charity but the activity or project they are requesting funding for must be charitable/for community benefit. 

What can’t be funded?

Foundation Scotland maintains a standard list of exclusions which cannot be funded.  This includes anti-renewable energy activities, including activities contrary to the interests of Coimhearsnachd Bharraidh agus Bhatarsaidh Ltd, and any activities likely to bring them, Foundation Scotland or the community into disrepute. Please note this fund does not support applications from individuals. In addition, it currently does not support multi-year applications. 

How are decisions made?

Foundation Scotland undertakes thorough due diligence and conducts comprehensive assessments of all funding requests prior to making grant awards. Please ensure you allow sufficient time to apply before your event or activity is scheduled to take place, as we cannot provide funding for things that have already taken place.

Funding decisions are final, but applications that do not receive funding awards can receive feedback an,d where possible,be signposted to other sources of funding or advice. 

The grant award summary for 2025 can be found here.