SOME 20 projects across Teesdale shared in almost £250,000 of funding during the past year.
Sports clubs, schools and Christmas light ventures were among the groups to benefit from Teesdale Action Partnership’s (TAP) area budget of £246,852 last year.
A further £77,122 was given out through the neighbourhood budgets of the six county councillors represented on the TAP board.
TAP’s annual report revealed that the single largest allocation had been made to The Hub, in Barnard Castle, which received £27,317, to deliver services to help people recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Teesdale Association of Day Clubs was also a substantial recipient and used its £19,745 to continue to provide weekly lunch clubs for elderly people across ten community venues in the dale.
Some £15,980 was invested in automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras to help tackle rural crime.
Sports clubs to benefit from the funding pot included Barnard Castle Rugby Club, Teesdale Sailing Club and Tiger Sharks Amateur Swimming Club. Cash was invested in several community venues, including £10,000 for the refurbishment at Woodland Village Hall and another £10,000 for improvements at Toft Hill Play Park.
Cash from TAP’s holiday activities and healthy food fund went to a variety of groups providing activities for school children, including Gainford Parish Council, Utass (Upper Teesdale Agricultural Support Services), Teesdale YMCA, TCR Hub and St Cuthbert’s Church, in Etherley.
Outgoing TAP chairman Cllr Richard Bell said: “TAP also continues to support the local county councillors in allocating their budgets and a further 34 neighbourhood and small grants projects have been delivered throughout the year.”
These included cash to Evenwood in Bloom to beautify the village, Gainford Art Society to provide workshops, and Ovington Parish Council to support its jubilee celebrations.
Cllr Bell added: “TAP is not just about funding and as a board we have represented the views of the local community on key issues such as the county council’s mid-term financial plan, Durham County Council Econ-versation consultation and the North-East Transport Plan, to mention just a few.
“The TAP team also played a vital role during Storm Arwen in assisting Durham County Council colleagues in providing support to some of our most vulnerable residents.”
TAP co-ordinator Adam White said the board would have a budget of £144,902 for the coming year.
He added: “This budget will be spent in support of the ‘community recovery’ priority.
“We also still have access to our towns and villages budget of about £210,000 and a holiday activities with healthy food budget of £26,000.”
Inspector Ed Turner, of Barnard Castle Neighbourhood Police Team, was welcomed as chairman for the coming year during the annual meeting on Wednesday, May 18.
