Upcoming SPEN Community Benefit Fund workshops linked to the wider fund for EGL1, the Eastern Green Link 1 project (covering four Community Council areas*).

This is to support groups to move ideas into proposals and to constitute if they are just an informal group. This won’t be a general information session about the fund, updates will follow about a further session covering that.

This Social Investment Scotland event, run in conjunction with Scottish Power Energy Networks (SPEN), is to help people and organisations prepare to apply.

It will be held at West Barns Village Hall, EH42 1UP on Tuesday 18th August 2026 with two sessions available to book. (See below)

This workshop has been designed to enable and support community groups/ambitions in readiness for the launch of the EGL1 community benefit wider fund covering the areas of:

• West Barns
• East Lammermuir
• Cockburnspath and Cove
• Dunbar

The workshop will cover:

• Legal set up to support any groups that are not constituted understand their next steps if they wish to register an organisation more formally.
• Project development and planning pre application – working with groups to understand what they will need to submit a request to the fund.

SP Energy Networks will offer an overview of the upcoming funding while Social Investment Associates, Naomi Johnson and Jane Bruce, will work with groups on legal frameworks and project development as required.

We will run two sessions on the day 2-4pm and 5-7pm and those attending will leave with a clearer understanding of their next steps prior to the fund opening late September.

Keep an eye out for further details about this fund on our community benefits funds page. .

“We look forward to seeing you there.” SPEN

*1. Strategic Partnership Projects – To make sure that local people share the benefits of new energy projects, SPEN are providing a (slightly reduced) fund of £3.2M to support the four East Lammermuir Community Ambitions. The four community priority workshop reports will guide this spend.
2. Wider fund – Additionally, and in recognition of the broader impact of the construction work, they will shortly be launching another Community Benefit Fund of £800,000 – this time covering a wider area (West Barns, Dunbar, Cockburnspath & Cove, and East Lammermuir Community Council areas).