Community Building Advice and Financial Support

Action Description

Durham Community Action (DCA) aims to provide 50 community buildings with in-depth case work and provide capital grant funding to 10 of those buildings to support their transition to net zero.

Target

10 community buildings in receipt of grant funding

Progress Update

By March 2025 12 community buildings received capital funding for energy efficiency measures. 6 community buildings received funding for specialist advice to help address barriers to development i.e. legal advice, architects fees, feasibility studies. Supported volunteers running 157 community spaces to progress their net zero transition through building confidence, capacity and skills. 4 community buildings became part of our innovation project to extrapolate key themes around charity and property law with a focus on tenure, leases, and land registry, outlining pathways to resolution and shaping learning resources for other community buildings to help them navigate those challenges. In March 2025 we produced Community Buildings: A Guide to Property Ownership and Leases which aims to support trustees running community buildings to navigate complex property issues. https://www.durhamcommunityaction.org.uk/new-guide-launched-to-support-community-groups-managing-community-buildings DCA continues to work with community buildings to support their capacity building and attract further support for capital improvements.