GRANTS for businesses and organisations in West Devon may be easier to access soon, thanks to a move by the rural regeneration team at Devon Renaissance. In partnership with the Devon Rural Network, Devon Renaissance has brought in a small team of consultants to help applicants get support for projects under its Sustainable Farming and Food programme. The programme was launched earlier this year as part of the £2 million Sustainable Economies in Rural Communities (SERC) package. Grants for sustainable farming and food will aim to encourage diversification, market development, support for collaboration between businesses and organisations to boost productivity, and help businesses to develop sustainable products through sharing knowledge and best practice. Now Devon Renaissance, the rural regeneration partnership organisation for the county, says it wants to encourage more applications for grants. Liz Abell, programme co-ordinator for Devon Renaissance, said: ?We recognise that many people have good ideas but don?t have the time to develop them, and are sometimes a bit frightened of the procedures. ?We want to help businesses and organisations turn their ideas into reality, so we can fund the projects which Devon needs to develop sustainable farming and food initiatives.? The consultants, with a budget of £10,000, will help potential applicants by assisting with business plans, identifying funders and writing bid applications, and will also support the projects if and when they get funding on an ongoing basis. Projects that could be developed with the consultants? support can apply for a minimum of £5,000 with an upper limit of £100,000, although more may be considered for an exceptional project. The total fund available is £400,000. Anyone wanting further information ? or who has an idea for a project ? should contact Devon Renaissance on 01837 658643.
