Alvanley and Manley Pre School, Elton Community Centre and Frodsham Allotments are among the community projects that will benefit from the latest series of grants from the Marshes Community Benefit Fund (MCBF).

A variety of community-based projects have been awarded just over £72,000 in the eighth round of awards since the Marshes Community Benefit Fund was established in 2016.

Marshes Community Benefit Fund Panel Member, Joycey Bailey, said: "When the panel made the last awards back in May 2020 it did not envisage that, in November due national lockdown, we would again have to consider the latest applications through the Zoom's meeting platform.

"However, this did not deter the Panel's scrutiny and, as always, there was much debate regarding all the applications.

"The members agreed to award a total of just over £72,000 to eight projects which, in the views of the Panel majority, really encapsulated the requirements and objectives of the Community Benefit Fund."

The organisations and projects to be chosen by the Fund are:

The 4th Frodsham Scout Group

The 4th Frodsham Scout Group's Scout hut was, prior to Covid 19, was very popular as a venue to hire out, the improvements afforded by their £11,500 award will go towards phase one of the planned works, ensuring the garage refurbishment is completed.

Once all works are completed, the group hopes the more attractive space will encourage hirers, including businesses, to book the Scout Hut when it reopens.

With a large waiting list across all groups, and with the planned improvements completed, the centre would be able to increase troop numbers thus benefiting many more willing recruits.

Alvanley and Manley Pre School

Alvanley and Manley Pre School provides wraparound care for Alvanley and Manley Federated Primary School through its after school club: a lifeline service for many parents.

The pre-school plan to spend the awarded £8,500 on purchasing a 9-seater minibus, which will enable them to deliver wraparound care transporting the children, aged 2 to 11 between the Federated schools, for parents who have to work.

This service will also enable them to provide peace of mind to the parents of the children, some of whom are key workers and NHS workers, that their children are in a caring environment and transported safely between the different sites during the school day.

Frodsham Allotments

Frodsham Allotments manage and supervise the Association's Allotment Gardens, educating allotment gardeners, preserving skills and advocating the benefits of environmentally sustainable allotment gardening.

They wish to spend the allotted £2,500 on providing a mains water supply to their Kingsway site.

This will enable plot holders to enjoy the benefits associated with gardening on an allotment by reducing the need to transport water to their plots during the warm weather, which due to the distance can be a difficult and arduous task.

Helsby Football Club

Helsby Football Club's successful local team have been awarded £3,000 towards the move to their new sports academy. This money will ensure that they can meet their pitch fees and continue playing throughout the coming season.

Helsby Sports Club

Helsby Sports Club, formed in 1991, is a community amateur sports club offering sport and leisure facilities to the communities of Helsby and surrounding villages.

This non-for-profit organisation plans to use their awarded £8,054 to buy maintenance equipment for their new 3G pitch and a large storage container in which to house the equipment.

The club hope that the facility, when built and properly maintained, will offer the best all year-round access sporting facilities for all the members of the community, at their brand new sports facility due to open in the new year.

Helsby Community Sports Club are hiring!

Red Lion Crown Green Bowls

Red Lion Crown Green Bowls is an independent volunteer group that promotes the sport of Crown Green Bowling for the people of Frodsham and the surrounding areas.

They wish to use the £2,500 awarded to expand and encourage people of all ages, abilities and ethnicities to take part in crown green bowling by purchasing additional equipment which will enable them to set up weekly sessions locally.

Although the Red Lion bowling club would be the initial venue they wish to encourage all clubs in the town to get involved they also wish to form links and encourage the involvement of community clubs.

Elton Community Centre

Elton Community Centre impressed the panel with their detailed application and the vision that they had to transform the community centre to further help those in need in these unprecedented times.

The group plan to use the allotted £18,120 on improving the facilities for the village whose population is now twice the size that it was when the community centre was first built.

Rising to the challenges presented by Covid 19 the group have built a food bank and food pantry to help the village get through the pandemic and are now looking to provide support in the form of a community café and pantry, as job losses and low-income are expected to have a large effect.

They also wish to offer facilities to children by means of a youth room, which will offer a youth hub at least twice a week for 11–16-year-olds to be able to pop in and socialise.

Ince Village Hall