Get involved in the Ouse Valley Climate Action - Community Pitch. Awards of £500-£5,000 are being offered to shortlisted project and community groups to take positive climate action in the Ouse Valley.
Ouse Valley Climate Action (OVCA) aims to bring the whole community together to help the environment and create a more sustainable planet for future generations.
New applications
Applications have now closed and we are expecting to run another opportunity later in 2026. Our current applicants below are now entering the local fundraising phase.
Existing round of the Community Pitch
At the end of last year, in partnership with the National Lottery Community Fund, Lewes District Council and South Downs National Park Trust, we invited eligible organisations to submit their Community Pitch for sustainable project ideas that meet the Ouse Valley Climate Action initiative themes of reducing carbon usage, supporting nature and enhancing wellbeing, knowledge and skills around climate change.
Projects have now been selected to receive anything from £500-£5,000 from the Community Pitch Fund 2026. Now is the time for each project group to do some fundraising of their own to meet 10% of their costs by gathering donations.
Please find below details of the nine projects, including (where relevant) their own ‘pitch’ film and a fundraising page to raise donations so that the full funding can be confirmed.
ReNature Plumpton
Who are they? ReNature Plumpton is a partnership between Plumpton Parish Council and Plumpton & East Chiltington Wildlife Group. Its vision for Plumpton’s Parish is to be where wildlife flourishes, habitats are improved and expanded, where everyone can experience nature and wildlife with an improved awareness of the issues, including climate change’s impact.
Their pitch: The UK has been declared one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world. ReNature Plumpton has been formed so that everyone in the Parish has a deeper understanding of climate change and how to combat it. The whole community will play a role to help deliver nature recovery, making Plumpton a better place for nature and people to live and work.
The group would like to do a parish wide survey of night life in gardens and around the village. By discovering and monitoring the variety of wildlife, the community can take action to conserve and improve habitats, to protect and encourage our precious wildlife.
This funding would help the group purchase a bat detector, 4 trail cameras and an audio detector. The trail cameras will be lent out, and a series of workshops held to collate the data and make a plan for habitat conservation and improvement.
Fundraising: Renature Plumpton are looking to raise £300. If you would like to support them, view their fundraising page here.
Their short film:
Friends of Sutton Downs
Who are they? Friends of Sutton Downs (FOSD) aims to provide a means for local people to become involved in this neighbourhood green space, and to secure a future for this special place as a
nature friendly resource for the whole community.
Their pitch: By adding interpretive artwork to the popular existing rain garden it will be easier to understand how rain gardens work and how to build one at home. An extra downpipe and new channel will demonstrate that the roof water is used to water the plants – bringing beauty and biodiversity. A water refill station will make it easy to avoid single use plastic bottles and prevent littering. It will raise awareness of the inter-related issues of water use, climate change, and pollution.
Engaging all visitors will reach a wider audience and promote an interest in the wellbeing that renaturing the whole site brings. Besides making the site more attractive to visitors, our volunteering opportunities are designed to promote active involvement.
The project is permanent and, thanks to effective rain water management, the planting improves all the time.
Fundraising: Friends of Sutton Downs are looking to raise £515. If you would like to support them, view their fundraising page here.
Their short film:
Nature Trail at the JOFF Youth Hub
Who are they? SNEEK CIC in Peacehaven works with local residents building better, happy, more resilient communities. Working together on projects that support Sustainability, Nature, Environment, Education and Knowledge.
Their pitch: We will create a nature trail in the garden at The Joff Youth Hub. It will be a journey through different habitats that can support nature recovery and provide a safe haven for wildlife in our town. At its centre will be a quiet space for contemplation and peace.
The trail will incorporate signs with simple information and instructions, so that residents can be inspired to take ideas home to their own gardens and greenspaces.
This will boost biodiversity and create strong ecosystems and hopefully help to create a wildlife corridor through our whole town. It will be a place where young people can enjoy nature, learn about conservation and connect with wildlife.
We will build the habitats with residents by running workshops. We will advertise these sessions on social media. The garden will be maintained after the project ends by The Joff Gardening Club (open to anyone age 10-16).
Fundraising: SNEEK CIC are hoping to raise £500. If you would like to support them, view their fundraising page here.
Their short film:
Develop Outdoors
Who are they? Develop Outdoors is a project in Peacehaven that aims to inspire learning, wellbeing, and environmental responsibility through hands on outdoor experiences.
We create opportunities for people, especially young people, to connect with nature, gain practical skills, and contribute to community sustainability projects.
Our purpose is to nurture confidence, teamwork, and respect for the natural world through meaningful outdoor engagement.
Their pitch: Develop Outdoors wants to help Peacehaven become a natural haven. Collaborating with our whole community, we aim to create opportunities to gain experience about growing and cultivating wildflowers to plant around our town.
We are building a polytunnel classroom, a vibrant hub for learning about native wildflowers and the importance of increasing their presence. Living on the chalk cliffs gives us a unique opportunity to restore and celebrate our rare native chalk meadow grassland across as much of the town as possible.
Throughout the year, we will invite residents to join free workshops and community sessions, taking positive action together to boost biodiversity and create a wildlife corridor for everyone to enjoy.
We believe that growing together brings people closer, helping to build a resilient community and a healthier planet for all.
Fundraising: The Develop Outdoors project is hoping to raise £475. If you would like to support them, view their fundraising page here.
Their short film:
Thriving Ouse Festival
Who are they? Love our Ouse is a community based initiative to link people to celebrate, raise the profile of and upscale positive action for our river from source to sea. We believe the Ouse has the right to support a rich biodiversity and a thriving riverside community.
Their pitch: Love our Ouse would like to be part of the flagship Thriving Ouse Festival to celebrate, learn and act for the River Ouse and its tributaries. The community festival will be a series of events for local people and all levels of key stakeholders to come together and create a shared vision of a thriving Ouse which faces extensive threats and challenges. Celebrate the incredible achievements of the pioneering River Ouse Charter to date and be part of turning this powerful declaration into a game changing movement with which to turn the tide on the health of the river. Take part in local events and activities across the Ouse Catchment.
Fundraising: The Thriving Ouse Festival project is hoping to raise £500. If you would like to support them, view their fundraising page here.
Their short film:
The Wild Invitation
Who are they? The Wild Invitation is a creative community project by the People’s Park for Nature, designing small-scale installations that spark curiosity and deepen people’s connection to the natural world. Through co-created art, storytelling, and sensory prompts, it invites everyone to notice, care for, and participate in local nature recovery.
Their pitch: The Wild Invitation is a community-led project creating 10–15 small-scale, low-cost installations—artworks, interpretive signs, sensory prompts, and “pause points”—to reconnect people with nature across the Lower Ouse Valley.
Through co-creation workshops with local artists and communities, participants will design and pilotthese installations in diverse sites, fostering curiosity, care, and long-term stewardship of local landscapes.
By encouraging engagement with wildlife, native plants, and seasonal change, the project supports rewilding, biodiversity, and climate-friendly land management. The open-source toolkit and showcase event will enable anyone to replicate or adapt installations, inviting broad participation from resident groups, schools, and landowners.
After the funding, these replicable designs will continue to inspire creative nature engagement, strengthen community-led conservation, and contribute to ongoing People’s Park for Nature restoration, ensuring lasting environmental and social benefits.
Their short film:
Barcombe Parish Council
Who are they? The Parish Council located within the parish of Barcombe. The parish includes the main settlement at Barcombe Cross, but also Spithurst, Town Littleworth and Barcombe Mills.
Their pitch: Create the Green Barcombe website – a dedicated online platform providing a focal point for Barcombe’s long-term environmental vision.
Run an inaugural EcoFair in March 2026 to be held in the Village hall. This is designed to launch and promote local environmental engagement and it’s hoped that the event will act as a catalyst for community iviovlement and collaboration in sustainability initiatives.
The Flagship Biodiversity Initiative – a community-led project focused on establishing a ‘pollinator highway’ to enhance local biodiversity. The initiative will provide guidance on pollinator-friendly planting, and home-based habitat creation and, hopefully, provide wildflower seed for local residents.
Their short film:
Cleaner Sussex Rivers and Beaches
Who are they? ReAP UK is a registered charity that collects and facilitates the recycling of plastic litter from all aquatic environments from river source through lakes, canals and reservoirs and our coastal waters. Our purpose is to actively reduce the amount of plastic waste in these delicate ecosystems and promote sustainable practices for a cleaner and healthier world.
Their pitch: To collaborate with local schools and beach clean groups on litter picks and supplying custom designed bags to easily sort recyclable materials. Once recorded, all the materials recovered will be recycled by REAP. To raise awareness of the impact of plastic litter on our environment, the need for all to reduce our plastic consumption and the benefit of recycling.
Removal of harmful plastic litter will improve the local environment. Engaging with young students taking part, we can establish a sound recycling philosophy with them for the future.
An outdoor activity, Litter picking has proven positive impacts on mental and physical health, combining a sense of wellbeing, purpose, and the achievement of preserving our future environment. Project details will be promoted on social media by all those taking part, posting dates, results, pictures, and video content. REAP will continue to support local schools and groups in these activities in future years.
Their short film:
Hillcrest Community Centre – Heart of the Newhaven Community
Who are they? The Hillcrest Centre was formerly a school but is now a multi-space community amenity – run for the community, by the community.
It is home to many local activities and services and has rooms available for hire. There is also a cafe run by Havens Community Hub serving delicious meals and refreshments.
Their pitch: The current Board of Trustees for the Hillcrest Community Centre is committed to improving and sustaining the Heart of the Community building whilst acting for the environment and helping fight climate change.
This funding will help us:
- to install destratification fans to recirculate warm air back to lower levels,
- to setup rapid composting ‘hotbin’ systems and
- to help insulate our main building and outbuildings through lagging and replacement doors/windows.
Over fifty local groups regularly use the Centre, with thousands of individuals visiting each year. People are kept updated via our website, social media and newsletters.
Their short film:
Please note:
Donations will be used to support the intended project. If funds are raised in excess of the final project costs, the surplus will be used by the recipient to enhance or maintain the project, in line with its organisation’s objectives.
If this is not possible, the funds will be transferred to the Community Pitch Fund, administered by the South Downs National Park Trust (registered charity no. 1174975), to support other charitable projects in the Ouse Valley Climate Action area.
If a project is unable to proceed or is not completed, donations will similarly be redirected to other eligible projects in the area. If you wish to request a return of your individual donation, please contact: grants@southdowns.gov.uk