At East Cambridgeshire District Council our focus is to deliver projects and provide funding to support and enhance projects in our local communities. By listening to what our residents, businesses and organisations really want, we have been able to deliver schemes that enhance people's lives the length and breadth of our district.
You can use our interactive map to see examples of where we have invested money for the benefit of the community:
The map includes details of:
- Market Town Projects: We invest funds in our market towns to help make our high streets a better place to live, work and shop which is great for local residents and the economy too
- Parish Council Projects: We provide grants and funding to Parish and Town Councils to help them deliver projects which meet the needs of their local residents, such as improvements to village halls, recreation grounds and doctors' surgeries
- Bus and cycle networks: We have carried out feasibility studies and provided financial support for a number of bus, cycle and walking initiatives to help support sustainable travel and connect our rural communities
- Funding for community groups and sports clubs: Whether it is funding for Warm Hubs, supporting a Baby Bank or helping a Men's Shed, we aim to improve the health and wellbeing of thousands of people every year
- Business support: Through our support for local businesses and training and skills initiatives, the support we provide is designed to give our local economy the cash-injection it needs to help it reap rewards in terms of attracting more businesses to our area, boosting the economy, creating new jobs and enhancing skills
- Creating a cleaner, greener East Cambridgeshire: Projects such as our community orchard initiative and converting our bin lorries to HVO all help in our ambition to become net carbon zero by 2040
District-wide projects
Alongside those projects shown on the map above, there are a number of district-wide projects:
| Name | Type | Date | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Super-fast Broadband | Corporate Plan | 2015-2019 | District-wide roll out of super-fast broadband across 69 areas |
| Covid-19 business grants | Corporate Plan | 2019-2023 | District-wide grants administered to 3,321 businesses, totalling £21,015,981 |
| Gold standard for the council housing service | Corporate Plan | 2019-2023 | District-wide Housing and Community Advice Service has achieved the gold standard of service recognised by the National Practitioner Support Service (NPSS) in 2020 |
| New bus service proposals for East Cambridgeshire | Corporate Plan | 2019-2023 | The New Bus Service Proposals for East Cambridgeshire prospectus (PDF) was adopted by the council in November 2020 |
| Cycling and Walking Routes strategy | Corporate Plan | 2019-2023 | The council adopted an East Cambridgeshire Cycling and Walking Routes Strategy (PDF) in November 2021. The council has committed to prioritise ten cycle routes for feasibility exploration |
| Supported local High Street retailers | Corporate Plan | 2019-2023 | District-wide supported local High Street retailers by reducing Business Rates by 33% |
| Environment and Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan | Corporate Plan | 2019-2023 | District-wide, developed and delivered the strategy and action plan |
| East Cambs Community Land Trust set up | Corporate Plan | 2017-2019 | District-wide established in November 2017 as an umbrella Community Land Trust (CLT) (external link) for the whole of East Cambridgeshire |
| Transferred waste contract to East Cambs Street Scene Ltd | Corporate Plan | 2017-2019 | District-wide |
| Supported the creation of an additional 460 jobs | Corporate Plan | 2015-2019 | District-wide |
| Community Land Trust (CLT) grants | Corporate Plan | 2019-2023 | District-wide grant scheme established for groups wishing to set up a Community-led Development Group and for more established groups, the council also has a pre-development grant that can support groups with pre-development costs |
More about our projects:
- Council approves £2.3 million funding for community projects
- Council approves £95,000 High Street Renewal Fund to help improve Littleport and Soham
- Medieval meets modern: Digital signs installed in Ely
- Council celebrates the planting of 28 new Community Orchards
- Community groups encouraged to apply for grants up to £1,000
Where the money comes from
At East Cambridgeshire District Council we receive funding from a broad range of sources.
A large proportion comes as a result of us putting in successful bids to the government and Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority.
Some of our projects are funded through council tax.
Money is also provided to the council from developers who contribute funds through a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL). CIL is a planning charge, introduced by the government to ensure that new development contributes to the cost of the infrastructure it will rely upon, such as schools and roads. Our CIL money has helped to expand St Mary's practice in Ely, improve the A142 at Witchford roundabout and build a new youth and community centre in Littleport.
How much we invest
In 2022/23 we invested £2.3 million in nine community projects, such as improvements to cycle and walking routes, community hubs and village hall upgrades. This is on top of £10 million in community infrastructure and £3.8 million to parish councils.
Market Town Fund projects worth nearly £3 million have either been completed or are underway to help boost the economy of East Cambridgeshire. We are also seeking £3.2 million to spend on projects to enhance skills, create jobs and explore new and innovative ways of working.