Stockton village awarded £1,000 from Calor to fund new bus shelters

Stockton villagers in Norfolk gain a grant of £1,000 to help fund new bus shelters on the A146 Norwich Road, as part of Calor’s annual funding scheme

Stockton villagers in Norfolk are celebrating after being awarded a grant of £1,000 to help fund new bus shelters on the A146 Norwich Road, as part of rural energy provider Calor’s annual funding scheme.

The aim of the Calor Rural Community Fund is to give off-grid communities the chance to gain grants for projects that will improve local life. With a total fund of £50,000, this year the scheme offered funding for 21 different projects, with prize pots ranging from £1,000 up to £5,000.

The A146 Norwich Road is a very busy road and the bus stops are completely exposed to the elements. School and college children use the buses daily, as do many elderly people to access doctors, the hospital and shops, as there are none of these facilities in Stockton.

The Calor grant will be used to help fund a new bus shelter, with the grant going towards the concrete bases for the shelters.

Ailsa Pringle, Volunteer for the Stockton Parish Meeting said: “Following the death of one of our school boys alighting from a bus four years ago, the village has been raising money to provide a refuge from the traffic for our vulnerable residents.”

“Calor’s generosity means that we can provide a safe place for our villagers to wait, protecting them from both the weather and the dangers of the unrestricted ‘A’ road. The fumes, back-draught and spray from the fast traffic make waiting for the buses quite a hazard, so a partial glass wall in front of them would protect them from these.”

Paul Blacklock, Calor’s Corporate Affairs Manager added: “As a rural energy provider, we understand that country living can be challenging and access to community facilities can be especially difficult.

“We set up the Calor Rural Community Fund to be able to give something back to these rural communities, and this year we were inundated by a number of deserving projects. We’re delighted to award Stockton village with £1,000 to help fund its new bus shelters.

“This year’s scheme was so successful we plan to relaunch it again in 2019, so keep an eye out on our website and social media channels for updates as we hope to be funding more fantastic projects near you!”

For further information, please visit www.calor.co.uk/communityfund.