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Overview of the Scheme

  1. Introduction and background
  2. What's the fund for?
  3. Who can apply?
  4. Who runs the scheme?
  5. Grants Panel
  6. Supporting Alliance

1. What is the Climate Challenge Fund?

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing us today. Overwhelmingly, scientists, economists and politicians agree that our everyday activities contribute to climate change. These activities are emitting large amounts of carbon dioxide and other gases that contribute to climate change and as a result we are trapping more of the sun’s heat and the planet is getting hotter. There are lots of things we can do as individuals to reduce our carbon emissions and if we act together by working as communities we can do even more.

The Climate Challenge Fund aims to help Scottish communities make a real difference by significantly reducing their carbon emissions. It was proposed by the Scottish Greens during the 2007 Scottish Parliamentary elections, and adopted by the Scottish Government as part of the budget negotiations in early 2008. The Fund is £27.4m over three years (2008-11). 

Grants are available to empower communities to take action to reduce their carbon footprint and make a real difference to the local and national environment by significantly reducing their carbon emissions. There is no set grant amount, no minimum, but a £1m maximum. Projects seeking more than £1m of grant funding from the Climate Challenge Fund may apply if they can demonstrate a particularly high potential carbon saving and clear alignment with the other fund criteria. Applicants are not required to find funding from other sources but joint-funded projects are welcome. However, applicants must check the conditions of grant issued by other grant funders as they may not allow funding of a project from another source.

The terms ‘emissions’ and ‘carbon emissions’ used on this site refer to gases covered by the Kyoto Protocol: Carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulphur hexafluoride.

2. What's The Fund For?

Climate Challenge Fund grants are primarily designed to help communities reduce their carbon emissions. That might mean planning and organising in the first instance, but will always mean taking direct action to reduce carbon emissions. The projects funded will be expected to be ambitious in their work to reduce emissions, for example, aiming for 30% reductions or more in carbon emissions over the lifetime of the Climate Challenge Fund which runs until 31st March 2011 and with carbon saving carrying on beyond this period as a strong legacy. Priority will also be given to ideas that help strengthen local economies, improve community cohesion and other social objectives alongside making significant carbon emissions reductions.

3. Who Can Apply?

The basic premise of the Climate Challenge Fund is that applicants must be Scottish based and by the time a grant is approved they must also be legally constituted, not-for-profit community groups. This may also include communities of interest, with a defined geography and where they form a legally constituted group. The grant scheme specifically requires that the community be the lead player in any partnership, with the community at the heart of all decision making relating to the project.

For more information please see sections II.3 and II.4 which include further detail on eligibility.

4. Who Operates the Scheme?

The Climate Challenge Fund (Climate Challenge Fund) was established by the Scottish Government in partnership with the Scottish Green Party and is administered by Keep Scotland Beautiful (KSB). KSB has been operating as an organisation to improve the quality of local environments in Scotland for over 40 years.

In addition to acting as the accountable body for the fund, the administrative team at KSB are able to offer development support for funding applications and also offer post-application support.

5. What is the Grants Panel?

Projects applying to the Climate Challenge Fund are put forward for consideration at a Grants Panel who make decisions on the funding of projects. The Panel has nine members who have been selected for their knowledge and expertise in community action and carbon reduction. The Grants Panel meet three times per year to review applications for funding and to allocate funds to communities who meet the set criteria.

For further information please see Section IV - Grants Panel.

6. What is the Supporting Alliance?

The Climate Challenge Fund has a number of organisations who are able to offer support to applicants to the scheme. This Supporting Alliance of organisations can support and provide information to applicants to the fund and is being co-ordinated by the Sustainable Development Commission (Scotland).

The membership of the Supporting Alliance is growing steadily and the range of organisations and the activities that they are able to provide support about is also growing.

For further information please see Section V - Supporting Alliance