South Yorkshire village bus passengers back safely under shelter thanks to four-figure Hazlehead Wind Farm fund grant

Bus passengers in a South Yorkshire village can now shelter safely from the elements once again thanks to a four-figure grant from the community fund linked to a nearby wind fund.

After decades in place, the old wooden bus shelter in the village of Carlecotes to the west of Penistone  had become so dilapidated that not only was it letting the rain in, but the roof itself was collapsing and making it unsafe to use at all.

With the bus shelter’s condition meant that local residents who were catching the bus to school and work in the morning had nowhere safe to wait, Dunford Parish Council moved to look for ways in which a modern replacement might be brought it.

And now, it has installed a new two-bay Heritage bus shelter with full end panels and aluminium seating after receiving a £4,266 grant from the community benefits fund linked to the Hazlehead Wind Farm, which sits between Carlecotes and the neighbouring village of Crow Edge.

As part of the installation process, a team of local people undertook a big clean-up in the area around the bus shelter to further enhance the local environment.

Susie Pickford, former member of Dunford Parish Council and treasurer of the Dunford Residents Association,  says: “The old bus shelter had served the community well, but it had reached the end of its useful life and it had got to the point that it really wasn’t safe to use at all any more.

“The Parish Council was particularly concerned that this lack of cover could deter some local parents from sending children on the school bus, especially if they were having to wait in the rain during the dark winter months, and so we began to look at options for bringing in a replacement.

“The new shelter looks really smart and is robust enough to last for a long time into the future, and we’ve already had lots of positive comments from both local people about the difference it will make to their morning commutes.

We simply wouldn’t have been able to purchase the new shelter without the generous support we’ve had from the Hazlehead Wind Farm Fund”

Susie Pickford, former mmber of Dunford Parish Council and treasurer of the Dunford Resident Association

“Its installation also provided a new opportunity for residents to come together and smarten up the surrounding area, which we hope will now retain the improvements we’ve made and will make the village an even more attractive place for walkers on the nearby Trans Pennine Trail to visit.

“This type of capital spend represented a big challenge for a small community like ours and we simply wouldn’t have been able to purchase the new shelter without the generous support we’ve had from the Hazlehead fund.”

The community benefits fund linked to the Hazlehead Wind Farm, which is owned by leading independent renewable energy producer ERG and managed by OnPath Energy, provides around £7,000 of funding for local good causes every year.

It operates in line with ERG’s ESG Plan objective of fostering shared value and supporting the sustainable development of the local communities hosting its renewable assets.

Eligibility is normally restricted to schemes within the parish of Dunford, but projects outside this area may be eligible if it can be shown that they benefit people living within it.

Melissa Falconer, Head of Business Development UK at ERG, said: “With the acquisition of Hazlehead Wind Farm, ERG is reaffirming its commitment to honouring its responsibilities to the local area, ensuring that the site continues to generate clean energy while remaining a trusted ‘Good Neighbour’ to the local community.

“For ERG, this means going beyond financial support and building a relationship based on shared values and a genuine commitment to contributing to the local area. Being part of this community means taking care of it, supporting initiatives that deliver tangible benefits for local people while also contributing to the protection of the wider environment.

“Hazlehead is therefore more than an energy infrastructure asset: ERG sees it as a resource shared with the local community. A valuable asset to be developed through collaboration, helping to build a sustainable future where clean energy generation can go hand in hand with the protection and enhancement of the rural heritage.”

Tom Chaplin, partnership and community manager at OnPath Energy, adds: “The Hazlehead Wind Farm community benefits fund was specifically designed to enable local communities to enhance the facilities available to their residents and build real community value.

“It has been successfully doing so for more than 15 years and this project is just one of the ways it will continue to do so for decades to come.”

Environmental and community projects which are interested in applying to the Hazlehead Wind Farm community benefits fund should first contact the fund manager on 0191 378 6342 or via apply@onpathcommunityfund.co.uk to confirm that their group or project is eligible.