CASH boosts totalling £74,000 have been shared between 21 community projects across Bromsgrove District in the latest round of New Homes Bonus (NHB) funding.
Among the beneficiaries are Avoncroft Cricket Club and the Bromsgrove Youth and Community Hub, based at the Baptist Church, which have received £7,400 each.
Belbroughton Recreation Centre has been awarded £10,000 and Cofton Hackett Village Hall has been handed £7,500.
Rev Paul Lewis, from Bromsgrove Baptist Church, said the funding would help provide more staff at the existing groups at The Hub and enable youth drop-in sessions to be held at the weekends.
“We are so pleased we have received this support so we can further what The Hub is doing and reach out to even more young people in Bromsgrove.”
Mark Wood, Avoncroft Cricket Club committee member and second team captain, said: “We are extremely grateful for the support given to us by our local council.
“The money will be invaluable in helping us improve our facilities and for the development of cricket throughout the community which is our ethos and at the core of the club.”
He also thanked Coun Malcolm Glass for the help he had given and his involvement in the process.
The New Homes Bonus Scheme, introduced by central government in 2011, sees councils receive cash each time a new home is built in the local area.
The aim of the scheme was for councils to pass on some of the money to communities experiencing significant levels of new housing, so facilities could be improved to cater for the increased population.
Initially Bromsgrove District Council did not pass on any NHB money to affected communities, using the money to support the central budget.
In 2014, after a 1,429-strong petition was presented to the council by Hagley Residents’ Action Group, the authority changed its policy and started passing cash to communities.
In the last five years, £450,000 has been contributed by the council from the NHB pot to fund local projects.
Lead petitioner Peter Rowbottom said: “Yet again the Scheme was substantially oversubscribed as the total money bid for far exceeded the £74,000 available, thus proving the popularity and continued need for the NHB money for local community facilities.”
