Community grant
- Darlington morris dancing group has received a four figure grant from OnPath Energy.
A longstanding Darlington morris dancing group is aiming to get more local people involved with their traditional pastime after receiving a four-figure grant from a renewable energy firm.
The Sadberge-based Locos in Motion Border Morris, which recently celebrated its 25th anniversary, performs regularly at festivals and galas around the region, as well as making weekly appearances outside different pubs across the local area through the summer months.
The fifteen-strong group of musicians and dancers holds practice sessions at Sadberge Village Hall on Tuesday evenings from September to April – and it is now planning to hold an open workshop on Saturday 9 November at Sadberge Village Hall for anyone interested in giving morris dancing a try.
A £2,427 grant from the community fund linked to OnPath Energy’s nearby Moor House Wind Farm is set to cover the cost of publicising and putting on the workshop, as well as the group’s hall hire costs for the next year.
Morris dancing is great exercise, we have a lot of fun and we’d love to see more people joining in with us.
The grant is also allowing the group to purchase new branded clothing and accessories to help refresh their black and silver kit, which is modelled on the historic Locomotion No 1 rail engine colours.
Anne Alderson of Locos in Motion Border Morris says: “We’re a very friendly and sociable group. Morris dancing is great exercise, we have a lot of fun and we’d love to see more people joining in with us.
“Our free workshop will give local people the opportunity to try a healthy and social activity. No prior experience is needed and there is no commitment to join the group but we hope some participants will want to join and help us sustain a traditional pastime which has been going on for centuries.
“Hall hire fees for our practice sessions rose dramatically during the cost of living crisis, and having the grant to cover these costs means that we’re able to make them freely accessible to anyone who would like to come along.
“It also means we can keep our performance fees affordable and continue to provide dance displays and talks for local organisations, charities and community events, while keeping our presence in Sadberge provides the village hall with much-needed regular income.
“We’re really grateful for the generous support that we’ve had from the Moor House Wind Farm Fund and hope it will help encourage local people to find out what we’re all about.”
Robin Winstanley, sustainability and community director at OnPath Energy (formerly Banks Renewables), adds: “The members of Locos in Motion Border Morris group clearly have a lot of fun during their displays and events, and it’s brilliant to see how keen they are to share this enjoyment with the local community.”
For more information on the Locos in Motion Border Morris workshop, please contact Anne Alderson via chriswandanne@gmail.com or visit the group’s Facebook page.
Environmental and community projects in the vicinity of the Moor House Wind Farm which are interested in applying to its Community Fund should first contact the fund manager via apply@onpathcommunityfund.co.ukor on 0191 378 6342 to confirm that their group or project is eligible.
Our volunteer team is already well on with preparations for this year’s event, and as the nights get longer, the excitement’s really beginning to build.
“OnPath has ambitious plans to make further additional capital investment in high quality renewable energy infrastructure, which will amplify the part we can play in…
“We believe this project represents a significant step towards a greener and more sustainable future, not just for Bathgate, but for Scotland as a whole.
