Local charity, act, has launched its first community incentive - ‘act alfresco’ which rewards people in Argyll and the Isles with £100 for taking positive steps to enhance protect and promote the wonderful outdoors on their doorstep.

With a proactive aim of ensuring Argyll and the Isles is a place enjoyed by residents and visitors, act hopes to get a positive response to the incentive.  There are twenty grants of £100 up for grabs, providing applications comply with the regulations outlined on the act website.  Applications are open to individuals, groups and communities.

Julie Young, project manager said ‘Act is all about enhancing the beautiful scenery of Argyll and the Isles so it can be enjoyed by residents and visitors now and in the future.  We are taking positive steps to support people in the area who are doing a fantastic job at this already - and to motivate others to get involved.  After doing some research we found that there are a lot of people out there with great ideas on how to protect and/or enhance our environments but don’t necessarily have any budget to do so.  By providing grants we hope that we’ll see projects come off the ground that otherwise would not exist.’

‘It doesn’t have to be a large-scale project either’ she continues ‘whether its building a chair in the outdoors so others can enjoy a view, creating a garden that helps to nurture our wildlife or painting an unsightly building – as long as it enhances, promotes and protects our environments, it qualifies.’

Act has been receiving applications already and successful projects include a clean up loch operation, a refurbishment of a ferry waiting room and a development of a community garden.

For more information on act alfresco visit www.act-now.org.uk - the incentive is open until the end of September.