Live Here Love Here Small Grant Scheme Case Studies of successful Live Here Love Here Small Grant Scheme Projects

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1 Live Here Love Here Small Grant Scheme 2015 Case Studies of successful Live Here Love Here Small Grant Scheme Projects

2 Urban River Restoration Project Glas-na-Bradan Conservation Association The Glas-na-Bradan Conservation Association in Newtownabbey received funding through the Live Here Love Here Small Grants Scheme to address the need for improved water quality in order to enhance the surrounding urban biodiversity. This is a unique urban river project that includes both cross community and educational elements. This funding enabled the association to purchase high tech, scientific instruments required to monitor the quality of this urban river system. This has enabled them to examine the impact of urbanisation on the river s quality and link this to the life found in it. The group have already carried out a number of community events and have many more planned throughout the Spring and Summer. ANTRIM AND NEWTOWNABBEY BOROUGH COUNCIL

3 Environmental Éanna - Croí Éanna Croí Éanna in Newtownabbey received funding through Live Here Love Here to enable local volunteers to develop a 10 acre site with a community sensory garden, a community allotment, free range hens and bee hives. The project saw the development of the environmental capacity of local volunteers to gain the necessary, skills, confidence and knowledge to begin the development of the 10 acre site. The project saw the completion of six projects which will be added to and developed as the weather improves. The project was intergenerational and brought together over 135 volunteers ranging from schools to sports clubs to work together. ANTRIM AND NEWTOWNABBEY BOROUGH COUNCIL

4 Comber Train Flower Planter Comber Regeneration received funding from Live Here Love Here to carry out the Comber Train Flower Planter project at Glen Link. Glen Link follows the old County Down Railway line at the old engine shed (currently the fire station) and was planned as a visual link between the railway line and its history going back over 100 years. The installation of the train and planter now forms a historical marker with the past and act as a reminder to the younger citizens and visitors as to the importance of Comber in the railway network from Belfast and onwards to County Down. The colourful floral display highlights the partnership working between the community volunteers and the horticultural society. ARDS AND NORTH DOWN BOROUGH COUNCIL

5 Community Horticulture Investing in Volunteer Education (CHIVE) The CHIVE project was funded by Live Here Love Here to transform an existing sensory garden that had become difficult to manage and was preventing Kilcooley Primary School from doing outdoor activities with pupils and the wider community. The funding enabled the group to establish planting areas, veg beds and establish an outdoor year round classroom in the form of a polytunnel as well as enabling gardening events to take place involving the wider community individuals will be able to take fresh fruit and vegetables home and learn more about environmental awareness and health. This project has encouraged the children and the local community to promote a sense of responsibility and pride for their surroundings and create a culture of social caring. The group has engaged with 44 volunteers within the local community who are really enthusiastic and are looking forward to continuing with the project in the future. ARDS AND NORTH DOWN BOROUGH COUNCIL

6 The Making of Miracle Way The Making of Miracle Way project was funded by Live Here Love Here and has been a great success. Not only has the project built a great community space but it has built a great sense of community, which was missing from this area. The group hosted two workshops for local residents, building benches for the alleyway, raised beds and preparing hanging baskets. New residents who were not previously involved in the alleyway project engaged in the workshops, including residents from ethnic minorities and newcomer families. To celebrate the success of the project the group hosted a residents barbecue and were able to enjoy the fruits of their labour, sitting on hand-made benches and admiring the hanging baskets. Relationships with neighbours have been strengthened as well as significant improvement to the appearance of the alleyway. People have commented on making better use of the space, particularly for children as it is now safe and pleasant to play in. BELFAST CITY COUNCIL

7 Springhill Springmadden Street Garden With funding from Live Here Love Here the Upper Springfield Resource Centre were able to develop a community garden in an overgrown, neglected area. The funding enabled the development of a memorial garden and a large number of people from the local community attended an event to plant flowers in shrubs in memory of lost loved ones. Graffiti was removed from the walls and the group contributed to the project themselves by repainting the wall with positive images. A funday was held alongside this to engage with as much of the community as possible with various groups and agencies attending from Suicide Awareness & Support Group, USDTrust Urban Arts Unit, Belfast City Council Parks Department and Springhill Residents Association. This part of the urban area where the garden is situated frequently attracts antisocial behaviour but the positive response from all members of the community would indicate that further development and maintenance of this area looks promising for the future. BELFAST CITY COUNCIL

8 Combatting Litter in Your Community Live Here Love Here and Derry City and Strabane District Council have recruited a band of forward thinking community groups and volunteers who will introduce some innovative methods to combat litter and dog fouling in their communities. Groups are introducing brightly coloured footprints to bins to guide the public to do the right thing; posters with eyes on them that glow in the dark to deter dog fouling and specially designed bins that allows users to vote with their butt by using cigarette butts. Groups will be provided with all the kit and advice to carry out and monitor the project in their local area. DERRY CITY AND STRABANE DISTRICT COUNCIL

9 Grow Arney Grow! With the Cleenish Community Association Arney Hall is the focal point of the community and provides essential facilities for local groups including the adjacent primary school and playschool. In April 2016 Cleenish Community Association hosted a major Flower Festival in the hall and neighbouring church which attracted people from all over Northern Ireland and adjacent border counties. In preparation for this over 30 volunteers have shown true community pride during the harsh autumn and winter months to carry out much needed environmental improvements by sprucing up the local area, around the hall, Arney Crossroads and approach roads into the village. Funding provided by Live Here Love Here enabled the group to carry out tree planting and installation of flower boxes and seats. Overall the group planted over 3000 bulbs which will provide a flurry of colour into the summer months. FERMANAGH AND OMAGH DISTRICT COUNCIL

10 Edible Picnic Area at An Creagán Funding provided by Live Here Love Here has enabled the project at An Creagán to create a new picnic area/rest point for walkers and visitors, construct seating and directional signage along the trails and clear sections of invasive self-seeding conifers at various points to both improve the habitat and the vistas and views from the paths. The work was done through community engagement with trained volunteers helping to fell and clear large, mature trees as well as pull out the invasive saplings from the marginal bogland. The Centre s existing Community Garden Group planned and created the edible picnic area which included site clearance, creation of new planting beds, installing stone edging, building planters and then planting the various fruit trees, bushes, herbs and flowers to make it an edible picnic area. The Centre s existing walking group assessed the signage needs around the paths as well as identifying areas where it would be beneficial to install seating and remove sections of trees. Several events were also opened up to volunteers from the general public such as the Big Christmas Tree Tug, where people assisted in pulling out hundreds of small lodgepole pine seedlings from an area of wetland; Sprucing Up The Forest where volunteers were trained in the safe felling, snedding and removal of larger trees using hand tools. These larger trees were used to create seating and other features of interest around the walking trails. This 3 day event in particular attracted attention from the media and public and has fostered continued volunteer engagement in other projects since. FERMANGH AND OMAGH DISTRICT COUNCIL

11 Learning Habitats - Causeway Coast and Glens Heritage Trust Funding provided by Live Here Love Here has enabled this project to enhance native habitats, including meadow creation, native hedging and tree planting, while connecting and embedding biodiversity learning into the curriculum. The project saw children and staff work together to grow wildflowers from seed gathered last year, planting 100 native trees and developing biodiversity learning as a central part of teaching and learning. This project has increased biodiversity within three school sites but perhaps more importantly created the conditions for building capacity among the three schools staff to incorporate biodiversity into learning enabling the legacy of this funding to last many years. MID AND EAST ANTRIM BOROUGH COUNCUL

12 Hut Up! 1st Whitehead Scout Group Through funding provided by Live Here Love Here the Hut Up project saw the development of an overgrown area around the Scout Hall into a usable space for the Scouts and other local groups. The funding enabled the group to purchase and use equipment to carry out some of the hard landscaping and the volunteers were heavily involved in planting and developing the picnic and seating areas. The improvements on the site have given the 1st Whitehead Scout Group the pride to keep the area looking great and they hope to see the space used by the community. MID AND EAST ANTRIM BOROUGH COUNCIL

13 Down Your Street Down Your Street helps local groups to take voluntary and practical environmental action to improve their communities. All groups who registered to take part in the campaign received a free pack of litter pickers, hi visibility vests, gloves and bags. Newry, Mourne and Down District council also ensures that any litter gathered by the groups is removed. At a recent celebration event many groups were rewarded for their contribution to the scheme and groups have indicated that they used their pack really well with multiple clean ups planned for the future. Newry, Mourne and Down District Council

14 Wildlife Garden Lock 3 Newry Canal Through funding provided by Live Here Love Here the Inland Waterway Association Ireland, Newry and Portadown Branch were able to create a wildlife garden in an unused overgrown area that has long been used as a local drinking hangout; and the associated problem of litter dumping at Lock 3, Newry Canal. The project has created an area that is beneficial to wildlife and also accessible for the public so they can enjoy the beauty and diversity that is on offer along a canal tow-path setting. The long term vision for the project is to see the possibility of wild foraging of berries, nuts, and seeds from the plants, shrubs, and flowers that have been introduced to the wildlife garden. LIVE HERE LOVE HERE COCA-COLA COMMUNITY FUND

15 Extreme Clean NI Environment Support Team Live Here Love Here Funding has enabled this band of fearless volunteers to carry out and clean up areas which are largely inaccessible by foot. The group has employed the use of boats, experienced sailors, rowers, climbers and outdoor pursuits instructors to help undertake the clearance of rubbish along inland water ways and coastal areas. From previous litter picks the group had discovered rubbish dating back to 1960 s. Without their efforts the historical rubbish will not be removed; instead photo-degrading into small pieces, causing significant harm to wildlife. The extreme nature of these picks has attracted the attention of young people and it attempts to cement a lasting connection with and respect for the natural world. LIVE HERE LOVE HERE COCA-COLA COMMUNITY FUND

16 Thank You These projects have been made possible by the continued support of the Live Here Love Here partners. Without the financial assistance provided none of these innovative, environmental and community focused projects would have been possible; the projects will not only benefit the communities today but will continue to do so for many years to come. THANK YOU TO THE LIVE HERE LOVE HERE PARTNERS Thank you to all our partners for your continued support. Not already a partner but want to support Live Here Love Here? Please contact: enquiries@liveherelovehere.org