Ferry Farm community grants in action

Ferry Farm Community Solar is excited to share progress from the first set of projects funded through the tenth round of its small grants fund. In January over £25,000 was awarded to local groups leading initiatives in energy, wildlife, climate resilience and environmental education. The fund, administered by Selsey Community Forum, continues to support brilliant community-led action across Selsey and Sidelsham.

Supporting Biodiversity

The Manhood Wildlife & Heritage Group, awarded £2,158, launched the Sidlesham Pollinator Highway. This involved a new wildflower and rainwater catchment project to support native flora and local biodiversity. Following approval from Sidlesham Parish Council, a test bed has been left unmown to encourage native plant growth.

Lesley Bromley, Chair of the Manhood Wildlife and Heritage Group explained that "we surveyed the bed in late June and found that there were lots of white polar, yarrow and oxeye daisy emerging". The group, supported by Sidlesham School plans to expand the project in 2026.

Brent Lodge Wildlife Hospital was awarded £1,200 to support its outreach programme. In just six months the hospital’s Respect and Protect Wildlife outreach programme, which aims to educate and inspire people to care about wildlife and their natural habitats, has reached over 50 schools and community groups in the Selsey and Sidlesham areas. Ferry Farm’s support also enabled Brent Lodge to respond to a recent rise in wildlife cruelty by forming a local working group to raise awareness and tackle harmful behaviour.

Community Growing

The £10,500 grant awarded to Grow Selsey has fuelled a vibrant first half of 2025. Among the early highlights was a successful seed and plant swap event, which helped kick off the growing season with inspiration, ideas and shared learning.

The Hidden Garden has also flourished. This community gardening project encourages local people to become involved with growing fruit, vegetables, herbs and flowers as well as providing spaces for wildlife to thrive. The garden is open to people of all ages and abilities, organised by Selsey Community Forum but looked after by a dedicated group of local volunteers.

“The Hidden Garden this year has facilitated a lot of new environmental activities,” said Project Lead Paul Saddler, “including groups from local schools running a 'Connection' project for pupils facing challenges in education and a local Wildlife Group running a 'Wildlife Warriors' group on a weekly basis. The garden has also been used for other Forest School activities as well as school art groups. Other regular users include work with adults with learning needs and supporting volunteers with Autism and Tourette's.”

Ferry Farm’s funding also supported was the first-ever Selsey Open Gardens event, which showcased 22 gardens and drew over 700 visitors, raising more than £8,500 in a single day for local charities. Looking ahead, Grow Selsey is preparing to launch two new projects - a kitchen waste recycling scheme, “inviting local households to bring their kitchen waste to us to be turned into compost to support the community garden” said Sadler.

Energy efficiency

Several energy efficiency projects are also making good headway. Cloud Nine Musical Theatre Group, with £1,420 in funding, successfully installed and used new energy-efficient follow spots during their spring production. Musical Director Simon Townsend described the upgrade as “fabulous energy saving, quality equipment and a great investment of your kind grant money.” 

Lastly, Sidlesham Parish Council used its £4,452 grant to replace and upgrade all lighting at the Memorial Recreation Ground. This included repairing a storm-damaged pylon and converting all floodlight pylons to energy-efficient LED units. "With confirmation of the grant and the return of drier weather, we were not only able to repair the damaged pylon and install two new Ferry Farm LED sets, but also persuaded the parish council to complete the full conversion of all pylons. The council realized that not only was there an electricity cost saving but that LED lights having a longer life would need less maintenance." - Martin Mellody on behalf of Sidlesham Parish Council.

Ferry Farm Community Solar is proud to see the positive impact of these grants in supporting local projects and making a difference in Selsey and Sidlesham. This funding was available as part of our open grant fund that supports projects across Sesley and Sidlesham in the areas of Energy, Environmental Education, Climate Change Readiness, and Wildlife. We operate as a Community Interest Company, owning and managing a solar farm just outside of Selsey. This solar array generates 5.14 million kWh of electricity annually, enough to power 1,300 homes. The next funding round, with £25,000 available, will launch this autumn. If you have a project or know of someone who does, you can apply later this year via the Selsey Community Forum.