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The Coastal Communities Challenge Fund (CCCF) supports community groups, third sector organisations and small businesses on Aberdeenshire’s coastline and can fund a range of activities with positive economic, social or environmental impacts.This year’s grants will be targeted towards activities or infrastructure which meet the following priorities:- Supporting the development of active travel routes along, to and from the coastline- Developing the coastal economy and sustainable tourism- Creating or enhancing community, leisure and recreational facilities- Safeguarding, restoring or enhancing the coastal environmentThe fund distributes revenues generated by Crown Estate Scotland, with applications being assessed and approved by NESFLAG – the North East Scotland Fisheries Local Action Group - a cross-sector partnership comprising representatives from Aberdeenshire’s coastal and fishing sectors.Projects approved under this application round must be completed by 30th September 2026.

The "Our Local Nature" Grants are available to fund innovative projects, designed and led by young people in the UK. It aims to empower young people across the UK to take the lead on projects that involve their local nature and natural spaces.The grant is purposefully broad and welcomes novel ideas. Examples of possible proposals include:- running a school festival about nature- painting community murals showcasing biodiversity in the area- building a community garden- creating a nature walk- hiring a speaker to come and talk about local foraging.Adult applicants should develop their proposal alongside young people and the projects should seek to affect change or empower local young people and their surrounding communities to increase access to natural spaces and improve understanding of the local biodiversity.

The Area Committee has a small budget which can be used to 'top up' other funding sources in cases where otherwise there would be inadequate funding to allow something to happen. They will favour projects which respond to local needs and show clear evidence of community economic development and emerged from, or take cognisance of: - Community Action Plans- Settlement Plans- Town Centre First approach- The Local Community Plan: Strong Communities, Wellbeing and Connecting People- Local Place Plans- Community Empowerment Act, in support of the assembly of for example business plans or feasibility studiesPlease note that this fund is for projects taking place with the Kincardine and Mearns area only. See the website for full criteria.

The Standard Innovation Voucher scheme encourages new collaborations between a Scottish organisation and a university or college.It aims to make collaborative work accessible to all Small to Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), sole traders, social enterprises and third sector organisations and is open to applications from all industry sectors.There are two types of Standard Innovation Voucher:- Product/Process/Service Innovation Voucher: to support the development of a new product, process, or service for their company.- Workplace Innovation Voucher: to develop the company’s internal workforce, including new or enhanced workplace processes, innovative workplace practices, or innovative business expertise. This does not include staff CPD or to finance any external training courses.

This Fund supports charitable activities or services that benefit people living in the Latheron, Lybster and Clyth Community Council area in Caithness.The outcomes for the Fund are:1. Developing services and facilities.2. Sustaining and creating employment.3. Increasing skills and knowledge.4. Giving better access to sport, culture, heritage and the environment.5. Getting around and getting connected.6. Improving Health and Wellbeing for all ages.

The fund covers several communities including Crathes, Durris, Drumoak, Banchory, Finzean, Strachan, Torphins, Lumphanan and Inchmarlo. Priorities include:- supporting participation in sport and arts- promoting the provision of educational activities for people with physical and learning disabilities- encouraging social inclusion, integration and equal opportunities across the community- helping promote sustainable developments within the community.

The overall purpose of the Communities and Cultural Heritage Fund is to support community-led planning and development in the National Park that will help communities meet their aspirations and enhance community resilience. This is a partnership fund between the Cairngorms Trust and the Cairngorms National Park Authority (CNPA).The Fund aims to support two of the themes in the Community Action Plan (CAP):- A culturally vibrant community – projects that support and celebrate the unique identity and heritage of communities e.g. community spaces, features, buildings, people, traditions.- A socially connected community – projects that support communities to be happy, healthy, accessible and inclusive e.g. improving facilities, amenities, spaces, events and housing.Project spend must be complete and claimed by 10 February 2027.

The fund provides organisations with financial help to organise events and activities for residents in their area. Depending on the criteria, funds may be awarded for:- improving the appearance of the area- attracting people into the area- positively raising the profile of the area- promoting awareness of the area- contributing to a larger scale project with a longer term goalThe criteria for each area can be found on the Council website.

The Climate Ready Places Grant is to enable your community to consider what the impacts from these climatic changes and extreme weather will look like in your local area and to identify ideas for how you prepare to respond to them. The Climate Ready Places Grant will enable your group to host a workshop, which can be facilitated by the Lanarkshire Climate Action Hub and which will look at how your community can prepare for a changing climate. The workshop will gather observed local insights, consider the list of climate impacts from Adaptation Scotland and map this information onto a plan of your area. From the insights gathered at your workshop, your group can use the Community Climate Adaptation Routemap to identify climate actions and future projects and prioritise a climate action project to begin and which is funded through this grant. All activity including the workshop and the climate action project must be completed by 31st March 2026.

In recognition of children needing a Stronger Start in life, Tesco's Cooking for All campaign in partnership with The Sun, will offer £150k in grants through the Tesco Stronger Starts fund in an effort to improve children’s access to healthy food, have a wider understanding of where food comes from and an opportunity to learn how to prepare and cook healthy and nutritious meals.The type of things they would expect to fund are:- Food growing projects eg allotments/polytunnels that can then be used in lessons/breakfast clubs etc- Food education projects eg after-school family cooking clubs- Producing cookbooks/food educational materials for children to take home and use- Cooking equipment eg knives/chopping boards/smoothie makers to deliver project