Kilbarchan community projects boosted by cash injection

Three projects in Kilbarchan are set to benefit from over £5000 in grants awarded by the Renfrewshire Council Citizens Fund.

The Citizens Fund exists to provide financial assistance to those living and working in the area to further voluntary activity and to aid the regeneration of the community.

And at a meeting of the council’s Finance and Resources Policy Board today, councillors agreed a report which recommended the awarding of grants to three community groups- Kilbarchan Singers, Kilbarchan Community Council and the Kilbarchan Agricultural Society.

The Kilbarchan Singers have been awarded £3000 for the purchase of new sheet music and to provide honoraria for two singers from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland to work with the group for a season.

New music and compilations will be identified by the Musical Director with the aim of challenging the members into performing a difficult range of songs- which will then be regularly performed for the local community.

Adding to the cultural and musical landscape in Renfrewshire, the group gives young singers the chance to work with an established choir, expanding their repertoire both as a member of a choir or chorus and as a soloist.

Kilbarchan Community Council has received an award of £600 to purchase a case for one of the village’s defibrillators- which can help save the life of someone suffering a cardiac arrest.

Having secured match funding from the British Heart Foundation, the community council ran a successful fundraising drive to raise the community’s share of the funding to purchase the defibrillators.

The community council has been awarded the grant to fund the specialist storage case needed to keep the defibrillator in a climate controlled environment and accessible 24 hours a day.

After discussions with the Foundation and the Scottish Ambulance Service, the defibrillators are to be located at Kilbarchan Scout Hall and Kilbarchan Bowling Club- with both organisations happy to support the scheme.

The Kilbarchan Agricultural Society holds an annual exhibition of livestock, rural crafts and home produce in the local area- and in more recent years the show has expanded to include a dog show and light horse section.

A grant of £1,850 has been awarded to bring the light horse section show equipment up to new health and safety standards to allow the continuation of the event- which provides a social day out for local families to see farm animals and vintage machinery.

Councillor Mike Holmes, convener of Renfrewshire Council’s Finance and Resources Policy Board, said: “As a council, we are committed to empowering our communities and the Citizens Fund is a valuable resource which local community groups can access for support.

“The awarding of this funding will strengthen the social and cultural fabric of the local community and support the community groups to continue their fantastic work in the area.

“All three projects provide significant benefits for Kilbarchan- from improving the safety of residents in the area to providing cultural opportunity for the residents to be a part of.