Isaro Community Initiative is a community led organisation set up in 2010 and based in Clydebank at Centre81.

Our project consists of opening a new community space on 22 Alexander Street in Clydebank. We hope to reenergise e this long empty shop to provide good quality new and donated clothes at every reasonable prices. We will also have kids clothes and toys, games , books etc. These will be all set in a warm and welcoming café environment serving exotic teas and coffees, home made pastries and sweet treats for the people in Clydebank and surrounding areas.

We tried in the past to get permissions to open this shop but clearly, we do don’t have the expertise to make the application. This fund would help us obtain professional advice by employing the services of a local architect and the surveyor.

Milton Village Community Group was formed in July 2022. Our initial activities related to the Village Hall which we are custodians of following the demise of the previous hall group. We now run community activities and events from the Hall and have been able to create a focus for village community life. Our activities have been very well received and well attended. The young people of the community designed and painted a mural within the hall during the October holidays and we feel that a sense of community ownership of the hall and the surrounding area is growing within the community. 

We completed the initial stage application for the Community and Renewable Energy Scheme through Local Energy Scotland. We were successful in this application which then allowed us to make a request for an Energy efficiency assessment. This is now completed and we have the evidence advising of the changes that would enhance the operation of the building and importantly cut the energy costs which are currently curtailing the use of the hall. More importantly it has been agreed in principle that we will receive 75% of the costs from the Government's SME Loan Scheme with the group required to support the remaining 25% of the costs, we will use the grant to cover these costs. 

The Hall which sits within King George V Field which is the only field in trust in West Dunbartonshire and is maintained by the Council on behalf of the Village. Our activities and the offer we make to the community is hampered by the energy inefficiency of the Hall. We cannot open as often as we would like in the winter months due to the cost of energy and heating the Hall. The work we are proposing will reduce the carbon footprint of the hall (in terms of energy) by up to 72% and reduce our energy costs by a similar amount.  

The Lennox and Argyll Battalion is a charitable unincorporated independent Organization and part of the overall Boys’ Brigade movement. Our hall on Smollett Street, Alexandria,  requires an upgrade to its kitchen. The kitchen was last upgraded about 30 years ago and now showing it’s age.Maintaining a clean and hygienic kitchen is essential for health and safety reasons. We will look to install a new double sink can help by separating food prep from dishwashing. You can use one side for washing raw produce and the other for washing dishes, reducing the risk of cross-contamination. Plus, having a designated sink for food prep can help keep our kitchen organised and efficient. We will also replace work tops and some kitchen carcasses. Our 30 old year cooker will be replaced by a  Electric Ceramic Cooker (Stainless Steel).

The project is part of a larger phased refurbishment project which started in 2018 with the replacement of an inefficient heating system with a heat pump system thanks to a Community Budgeting Phase 3 grant of £5000 and an interest free loan of £7300 from the Energy Saving Trust. The whole lighting system in the building was converted to  LED lighting at the same time.  In 2019 and 2023 the apprentice painters from the Clydebank campus of the West College painted most of the inside of the main hall and associated smaller rooms for free. In return the apprentices gained valuable experience and enhanced their skills .