EXMOOR BIDS FOR BIG LOTTERY MILLIONS

An ambitious bid application led by the Exmoor Trust to secure funding for over £20 million of projects to benefit Exmoor has been sent to The Big Lottery Fund. The Big Lottery Fund announced its new grant priorities last June for projects of between £10 and £25 million and the ‘Sharing Exmoor’ consortium will be applying under the Living Landmarks scheme.

The application was presented by a consortium of Exmoor organisations aimed at extending opportunities for both residents and visitors to Exmoor. Edwin Beckett, chair of the Exmoor Trust said: “We have had a very busy time over Christmas and New Year pulling the various strands of the bid together, but the enthusiasm of our partner parishes and other organisations have demonstrated a real commitment to the project.”

There are four groups of themes in the application: ‘Visitor Experience at the Heart of Exmoor’ which seeks to enhance the experience for a diverse variety of visitors, especially those with additional needs; ‘Freedom to Access’ which will present schemes to develop graded fitness trails around Exmoor settlements. Equine tourism will also benefit from a much improved network of off-road bridleways and special projects to secure the future of the harbour in Porlock Weir and Valley of Rocks will also be included.

‘Rural Opportunities’ will develop a high standard of guiding to cover not only Exmoor’s geography and history but also its flora and fauna. The changes in agricultural management and climate are bringing new challenges especially for moorland management and the project would respond by using new technology, especially low ground pressure vehicles to assist control measures.

Finally ‘Designing for Diverse Needs’ will seek to meet the challenge of building sustainable and affordable housing in this sensitive area. The emerging Design Guide should be brought alive by an architectural competition from which successful participants should see their ‘design and build’ process created within the National Park.

Edwin Beckett said: “There are a total of 18 projects included within this composite bid which demonstrate a range of need which cannot be met from traditional sources.  Some are already well developed schemes but others are in the early stages of progress.  The Exmoor Trust has welcomed this opportunity to bring together the aspirations of Exmoor communities and organisations.  We face stiff competition from other regional entries and other national bids but we hope that our bid demonstrates the enthusiasm of our partners to build a sustainable future for Exmoor.  If we are successful each project will face the challenge of raising 25% of the capital costs.  But the combined application for £14,374,121 is to cover the balance of 75% which is the maximum allowed under this Living Landmarks scheme. “