The Surrey Hills Brewery, an award-winning traditional brewery based in the heart of the Surrey Hills was bursting at the seamsat its’ current premises in Shere. The business took a decision to move, literally lock stock and barrel to a new home at Denbies Wine Estate, giving them a much greater brewing capacity. Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme was able to award an £80,000 grant towards the cost of a new brewplant. New premises and equipment will allow production of bottled beer for the first time as well as enabling visitors to see the brewing process and purchase beer directly from the brewery. Whilst continuing its tradition of being fiercely independent there is also the opportunity in the future to add a new beer to their portfolio, brewed from Denbies grown hops for a truly local, quality pint. The move is currently taking place and they are hoping to start production the first week in June with a grand opening planned for later in the summer.
Dynamic Adventures successfully applied for a grant of £5,200 towards equipment to help build their Surrey Hills Safaris. As an established outdoor pursuit provider the company wanted to expand into the tourist market and needed funds to purchase new bikes, canoes and tents. The Surrey Hills LEADER grant scheme was able to fund 50% of the cost of new equipment enabling the business to offer high quality Surrey Hills Safaris for members of the public.
Dynamic Adventures is an outdoor adventure company which specialises in a wide variety of outdoor adventure activities including Duke of Edinburgh training, mountain biking, kayaking, orienteering, camping and first aid training. The business has been running for 11 years and its' current customer base is predominantly school groups. They identified a new business opportunity which was the provision of Surrey Safaris offering weekend activities to families and individuals. The provision of updated equipment will enable them to offer a first class experience for a different customer base. It should draw in new visitors to the area and raise the profile of the Surrey Hills. Dynamic Adventures have plans to work with other local businesses in the development of the Safari packages linking to farm shops, tea rooms and accommodation providers.
The trails project at the National Trust Box Hill site aims to encourage rural recreation through the creation of new walking routes and installation of play equipment. The Surrey Hills LEADER grant scheme was able to contribute to the project by an award of £22,800 towards the cost of providing waymarkers, information panels and marketing information.
Philip and Maria Samuouel run a unique farm learning experience along side their mixed farm business. Thanks to a grant of £13,000 from the Surrey Hills LEADER grant scheme they will be able to accommodate more primary school children on educational visits. This will benefit both local schools and visitors from further afield. The investment will also lead to additional work experience opportunities on the farm for local school leavers and trainee teachers. The money will be used to install extra toilet facilities and erect mobile field shelters to provide additional cover for picnics. Already hosting approximately 250 school visits per year, Philip and Maria hope to increase this by at least one more class per day and will be able to welcome more public visitors in the summer.
The Old Kiln Light Railway, part of the Rural Life Centre in Tilford has been awarded a Surrey Hills LEADER grantof £4,100 towards the construction of a 3rd platform. The grant will enable passengers to disembark into woodland and picnic areas and will be particularly suitable for visitors with mobility issues. This improved facility will attract new visitors leading to increased turnover for both the Rural Life Centre and the Railway.
John Martin’s woodland management business needed a capital boost to improve the efficiency of his timber extraction work. Thanks to a grant of £5,800 from the Surrey Hills LEADER scheme, the company can now buy a new forwarding trailer and crane. The business will no longer be reliant on contractors to move wood hence minimising damage to the woodland and ensuring a steady supply of timber for the firewood element of the business.
The Normandy Community Therapy Garden was looking for funding to help replace their temporary building currently used as classroom and administration space. Surrey Hills LEADER grant scheme awarded £36k towards to cost of erecting a new building. The charity has already raised significant money for the first phase of the project which on completion should provide an energy efficient, timber framed building to provide a much improved learning environment for students. This will include classrooms, admin areas, toilets, rest rooms, kitchen, stores and shop.
The Davies family produces the only ice cream in Surrey made on site using their farm’s own milk and cream. St Joan’s Farm Dairy has been successfully growing its ice cream business since 2003 and thanks to a grant from The Surrey Hills Leader programme can now purchase vital equipment to help expand production. They were awarded £6600 towards the cost of a new freezer, water chiller and ice cream potter which will help greatly increase production and cut down on waste .
Andrew Laver has successfully built his outdoor catering business over the last 10 years and approached the Surrey Hills LEADER grant programme for investment to specifically promote Surrey Hills produce. The programme was able to award him £17,000, 50% of the cost of a new catering trailer for this exact purpose. Andrew will now be able to sell Surrey Hills produce at major shows around the region, grow his business and help establish the Surrey Hills brand as one of quality.
The Colebrook family successfully approached Surrey Hills LEADER grant programme for over £27,000 to purchase a large mobile grain dryer and pre cleaner coupled with a generator and grain holding pit. Now they are able to improve the quality of their own grain as well as offering a hire service to a network of local farmers to enable them to produce a premium product. The LEADER grant scheme funded 40% of the project that will provide a piece of agricultural infrastructure currently lacking in the Surrey Hills.
Surrey Hills LEADER grant scheme awarded Wonersh Memorial Hall Trust over £12,000 towards the installation of a new, energy efficient gas heating system. The current central heating system in the hall is 50 years old and its unreliability meant that hiring the hall to new clients was difficult. Existing users such as the Girl Guides and the Wonersh and District Gardening Club have found the current heating system sub standard. The new heating system will enable the hall to be promoted to other groups and sections of the local community. This will enable the hall to become more of a focus in the village and enhance community spirit. The Trust would look to promote the hall to local small businesses and a nursery school.
Outwood Cricket Club was awarded nearly £10,000 towards the cost of a new kitchen and bar in their new pavilion. The old structure, 120 years old was badly affected by subsidence and needed to be rebuilt. The club had raised substantial funds for the build and approached Surrey Hills LEADER grant programme to cover the costs of fitting the kitchen and bar area in the completed new building. The new facilities will ensure that the Pavilion is well utilised and promoted. This will give the club a steady income and ensure its long term future.
The Surrey Hills Society successfully applied for a £9400 grant from the Surrey Hills LEADER programme. They wished to extend their current memebership of 745 individuals and 50 affiliated organisations by professional promotion of their aims. The 85% grant will enable them to purchase a trailer, gazebo and artwork to present a high quality presence at shows and events.
Winterfold Tree Services have been awarded £5,700 by the Surrey Hills LEADER grant scheme to purchase a firewood processor. The business has been operating for 15 years and wanted to take advantage of a rising demand for firewood. The grant will enable the business to increase its firewood output as well offer the potential for other local tree surgeons to hire the processor on or off site. Because of this expansion, the business is hoping to create two new part time jobs.
C J Crutcher and Sons successfully approached Surrey Hills LEADER team for investment into their 200 acre farm. They have been looking at a variety of diversification initiatives one of which was the sale of woodfuel. In order to expand sales they needed a storage area for cut wood as well as space for log production. Surrey Hills LEADER were able to award £7000 towards the cost of erecting a new barn.
James Duff’s woodland management business needed an injection of capital to increase its efficiency and capacity. The Surrey Hills LEADER grant scheme was able to fund £10,000 towards the cost of a new tractor, tipping trailer and log splitter. This has enabled him to increase his woodland management activity and expand the firewood and charcoal element of the business. At the heart of Surrey Firewood and Charcoal is the restoration and regeneration of woodlands. There is also a desire to promote the environmental benefits of woodfuel as a source of energy as well as the conservation value of woodland management. The purchase of a new tractor, tipping trailer and log splitter, 50% funded by the Surrey Hills LEADER grant programme will enable James to achieve his aims by making better use of by products of his work. It will also mean that he can work in a greater number of woods which will in turn help towards the sustainable management and utilisation of Surrey’s woodlands.
Oak on Oak
Location: Fallowfield, Sector: Forestry
Neil Attenborough started his hardwood milling business as a hobby and as a result of £27,300 awarded by the Surrey Hills LEADER grant scheme can now develop the business into a profitable going concern. Oak on Oak supplies local building restoration and construction companies and boat building yards with locally grown oak and other hardwoods from Forestry Commission sources. Neil has had 28 years of experience in wooden boat restoration and has also worked with the business’s large wood mill for 6 years. The grant will enable him to purchase equipment for transporting timber hence expanding the main business as well as boosting firewood sales. He is hoping it will eventually lead to the creation of a new job.Neil Attenborough successfully applied to the Surrey Hills LEADER grant scheme for £27,300 towards the cost of a new larger tractor, grab crane and trailer transporter. He has made a significant personal investment into the existing equipment but needed additional funds to cut down transportation costs.
The Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme has awarded in excess of £4,500 to Cranleigh Parish Council for a scheme to help bring all ages of the community together. The money has been used by the Parish Council to buy three pieces of outdoor exercise equipment for use by the over-18s. It is part of a Play Park at Snoxhall Fields that also provides a children’s play area and a nature area.
The Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme has awarded £2,960 to St Bartholomew’s Parish Church in Burstow towards the cost of repairing rotten timbers. The Grade 1 listed building, which dates back 1000 years, is the hub for many community activities both in Burstow and for neighbouring Smallfield.Parishioners had already raised in excess of £18,000 towards the bill and the grant will mean that the church can concentrate on providing community activities rather than devoting all its energy to fundraising.
tion of Bury Hill Fisheries.Bury Hill Fisheries, one of the country’s most successful day ticket coarse fisheries, was awarded two separate grants by the Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme, to enable its business to diversify.
Already running a successful top-soil business (a bi-product of the fisheries business) David de Vere, who runs the company wanted to diversify further into wood fuel.
The Albury Estate, near Guildford, successfully applied to the Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme for £4,400 towards the cost of a firewood processing machine. This equipment will enable firewood production to be increased significantly and will allow the Estate to go some way towards meeting Surrey’s growing demand, which is not presently being met.By enabling the Estate to devote more time and money to manage the woodland, biodiversity will be encouraged and access to the woodland will be improved.
James Little of Harvest Woodfuels Ltd has been awarded £18,800 towards the cost of a telehandler. The growth for sustainable, viable alternatives to fossil fuel heating in Surrey homes, has lead to an increase in demand for wood pellets. As the only wood pellet production facility in the South East, Harvest Wood Fuels at Tilford, is struggling to meet demand. James Little, who runs the company wanted to buy a telehandler which would enable him and his staff to unload the raw material sawdust used to make the pellets from the 20 foot shipping container where it is stored.
Hambledon Village Shop, a community enterprise, run and owned by village residents, is now able to support more local farmers thanks to the Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme.
The LEADER scheme was approached for help by Trustee and Post Mistress Jane Woolley, who requested a grant of £10,000 to provide new chillers and freezer equipment. The request was successful and was added towards funds already raised by the shop. Now the shop is able to supply customers with fruit, vegetables and meat sourced from local farmers and growers.
The Crutcher family successfully approached Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme for nearly £19,000 to help convert a 100 year old stone barn into storage and stable units at New House Farm, Newdigate. Now they are able to bring in a rental income from the barn to help ensure the 200 acre farm’s viability, as well as providing sought after storage premises for local businesses.
Mike Everitt was awarded £10,750 from the Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme – half the cost of a tractor needed to cut and transport wood from his land at Leigh, near Dorking. Mike, who already runs Garden Pride, a garden design and build business, wanted to expand his rustic wood garden furniture business, which he had already set up as part of Garden Pride.
Sondes Place Farm had been producing logs as wood fuel from its 45 acre woodland for a while but was limited by a lack of seasoning space for the logs and the capacity of its wood processor. Proprietor Kathleen Broom and her son Hugh could see the potential to expand the business and so applied to Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme for £23,075, half the cost of providing a new barn, timber deck and log processor.
Ben Nicholson has been awarded £27,500 by the Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme - half the cost of buying a second-hand wood-chipper for his tree services business. Currently Ben’s business involves managing woodland, including thinning wooded areas, clearing land for replanting, tree surgery, sawmilling and the provision of firewood.
On-line sales for commercial hedging supplier. CGJ Mathias and Son (Nurseries) wanted to move away from its traditional business of selling ornamental conifers to garden centres, towards the more niche market of supplying hedging plants via the internet. Although the company has a brochure-style website, it is unable to make sales on-line. Partner, Bob Mathias, applied to Surrey Hills LEADER Grant Scheme for £4440 -