Community development support in action
In 2024, an award of £97,000 was made by the Dorenell Wind Farm Community Benefit Fund to Tomintoul & Glenlivet Development Trust to fund the already established Glenlivet and Inveravon Community Development Officer post for a further three years.
The Development Officer role was created in 2022 and provides a useful and much-valued service to a range of community groups in the area, delivering priorities identified in the Dorenell Community Plan update as well as through local consultation work.
Claire (pictured) is the current Development Officer and has made a substantial impact in her role.
The Development Officer helps to organise key local events such as Tea in the Park and provides support to volunteers for several large-scale capital projects with the potential to lever in funds from other sources to the community.
In her role, Claire has supported the Braes Hall committee to carry out a design and feasibility study to renovate the hall. The committee has been helped by her to improve governance and is now registered as a SCIO (Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation) which will enable them to take forward improvement plans with further Development Officer support, focussing on energy efficiency improvements.
Glenlivet Hall committee has similarly been helped to carry out design and feasibility work and Claire, as Development Officer, will support them through the next phase of renovating the hall and improving energy efficiency.
The Braes community has also been helped with a project to create a memorial garden.
There is also a potentially very significant project developing at Inveravon Church (below) which is currently at an early stage. Claire has helped Glenlivet & Inveravon Community Association with a Stage One grant application to the Scottish Land Fund to purchase the building for the community.
If successful, a separate organisation may need to be established to take the project forward and support from the Development Officer will be required to provide additional capacity and expertise for local volunteers to make this happen.
Claire’s role as Development Officer has been instrumental in developing and enhancing the communication channels in the community. This includes a new website for the Glenlivet Hall and community Facebook pages which are used to share information on events, projects and other important local issues.
Recruiting and retaining volunteers is an issue in many areas, and the role of Development Officers is generally recognised as strengthening and enhancing essential local effort.
Claire has consistently demonstrated the benefits this can bring, as seen by support from local groups for the continuation of the role, and the scale and ambition of projects that volunteers have the confidence to bring forward.
Community feedback for project support includes:
“Having someone available who can guide us through the [project planning and fundraising] process has been invaluable not only for our project, but I’m sure, to many others in the community.”
“As with all projects under her remit, the DO takes a very hands-on approach to projects, working alongside community volunteers with enthusiasm and the required persistence to see projects through to the finish.”
And for supporting Tea in the Park:
“Without the DO input in organising this post-COVID, the wonderful celebration of everything that is good in Glenlivet would not have taken place. The DO is thoroughly professional in everything she does and is a huge asset to the community.”
Oliver Giles Operations Manager Tomintoul and Glenlivet Development Trust said:
“The three-year funding agreement for the continuation of the Glenlivet and Inveravon Development Officer represents a huge boost to Tomintoul and Glenlivet Development Trust and the Glenlivet and Inveravon community. It enables the Trust to provide long term, strategic support for the vision of the local community which includes asset improvement and acquisition. We're grateful to the communities of Glenlivet and Inveravon and Foundation Scotland for their continued confidence in TGDT to deliver this important function in our area.”
The Dorenell Wind Farm Community Benefit Fund supports a similar role in Dufftown, created and managed by Dufftown & District Community Association – the current postholder playing a key role in developing DDCA projects and networking and supporting the wider Dufftown community sector. The role is currently funded on a part-time basis for two years.
Read more about the Dorenell Wind Farm Community Benefit Fund here.