Staffordshire council awards grants to community groups and businesses
Community groups and rural businesses in South Staffordshire are starting off 2026 with windfalls from two Government funding pots.
A supportive space for young people struggling with mental health issues and a parish council project to improve village pathways have been awarded grants from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), while an expanding business and a sports and social club will receive boosts from the Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF).
South Staffordshire District Council’s cabinet approved applications totalling more than £75,000 at its latest meeting. It also considered internal requests for £20,000 to install solar PV panels on the roof of the council-owned office and attached bungalow at Hinksford Park in Swindon and a further £25,000 to cover applications that come through this month and next month for Warmer Homes funding for energy efficiency measures in vulnerable residents’ homes.
Sound Mind @ Grace2Grace has been awarded £7,000 to continue running drop-in sessions for young people facing mental health and emotional wellbeing issues. They include workshops on mindfulness, confidence building, resilience and coping skills.
Perton Parish Council requested £16,569 to help improve accessibility on pathways linking Dippons Lane with the village playing fields for residents with pushchairs, wheelchairs or limited mobility. It is the second phase of the project and the first enabled a park run to be set up in the village.
Business 4 Ever Energi Ltd sought £25,000 to install a renewable biomass heating system at its newly leased premises on Bradford Estates, Weston-under-Lizard. A report to the cabinet said: “This is a business expansion project with the company creating four new jobs, potentially rising to six, and they manufacture kiln dried logs, briquettes and woodchip for the commercial and residential markets; in addition, they also fabricate a range of timber products such as gates, benches and fences.”
Wheaton Aston Sports and Social Club bid for £5,600 to install safety balustrading around the its decking and patio area. An earlier REPF request was also approved in October to replace the patio decking area at the club to improve accessibility for outdoor events.
South Staffordshire District Council was given a £1.25m share of the UKSPF and £146,792 REPF to be distributed in the district during 2025/26. But time is running out to allocate funds before the end of the scheme.
A report to the cabinet said: “Following the mid-year budget review, it was apparent that an underspend existed through projects either no longer being progressed, or some of the indicative projects not needing as much as indicatively allocated. This had resulted in an underspend of £186k which we will need to allocate as quickly and transparently as possible to ensure spend and project completion of the programme ending in March 2026.
“An external bid round was announced in November 2025 resulting in three external bids and through the ongoing programme management with relevant project leads, it was apparent that there were asks for further UKSPF for internal projects that could deliver the spend and completion in time and which approval is sought for.
“Codsall Healthcare submitted a bid of £6,836.40 to assist in purchasing a Class 4 laser system to enable faster, more effective, non-evasive treatment for a range of conditions to address a gap in the local healthcare market. The laser enables the removal of skin tags, warts, verrucae and seborrhoeic keratoses, resulting in reduced access and longer waits for patients, which are no longer funded by the NHS in many areas, (and) the business is considering employing an apprentice as the business continues to grow should the new equipment be approved.
“Get Smart Accountants have requested £3,720. They are a growing local business looking to make the move from operating at home to expanding into business premises in Codsall and the bid is to assist in the purchasing of essential IT and office equipment; the business has also indicated that the move will lead to the company taking on a further accountant and an apprentice accountant.
“The Lewis Partnership have requested £11,304.24 to assist in the installation of (a) new oak pergola at the Moat House Hotel in Acton Trussell. The pergola will create additional external covered space to meet the demands of customers looking for outdoors events such as weddings and groups using the adjacent canal for walking and cycling.
“In the 2024/25 programme we allocated significant funding to improving sections of the South Staffordshire Railway Walk in the Wombourne area. However, the funding was insufficient to complete the full section in this area and a further £154k has been requested to complete the section between the Bridgnorth Road to the Plantation car-park, Wombourne/Himley.
“Discussions are ongoing with external partners to potentially access external funding to complete further sections closer to the boundaries of Wolverhampton and Dudley at either end of the walk in the district.”
