Renewable Energy Fund Grants

All projects should meet at least one of the four Themes and projects meeting the following investment priorities will score higher in assessment.

Theme one: Stronger Communities

Investment priorities

• Support for communities to consider their own priorities at a community level and deliver projects that address these priorities.
• Support for projects that seek to address fuel poverty, financial poverty or access to services.  
• Support to improve mobility for rural residents.
• Support for projects aimed at older and younger residents of remoter rural communities.
• Support to assist communities take on local community owned and/or managed assets.

Theme two: Prosperous Communities 

Investment priorities

• Support for targeted engagement in training, education and employment initiatives. 
• Support for projects that aim to improve the vitality and viability of rural town and village centres. 
• Support for growing the SME infrastructure and environment through improved business infrastructure and services but not direct to individual businesses. 
• Support to locally focused social enterprises and not for profit organisations which aims to increase profitability and numbers employed. 
• Support for tourism infrastructure, attracting visitors and or employment.  

Theme three: Healthy Active Communities 

Investment priorities

• Support for projects that help healthy and active life styles including sports, recreation and leisure.
• Support for projects that aim to maintain independence for older people and disadvantaged groups.
• Support for the relief by reason of age, ill health disability financial hardship or other disadvantage. 

Theme four: Sustainable Environmental Communities 

Investment priorities

• Support to protect and enhance the area’s natural and cultural heritage assets including increasing awareness of the asset.  
• To promote and encourage environmental enhancements including the provision or upgrade of infrastructure.
• Support for projects which aim to improve energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions, develop sustainable transport, climate change mitigation and increase community growing.