2024 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF THE STRATHNAIRN COMMUNITY BENEFIT FUND You are invited to the 2024 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the SCBF Monday 9th December at 7 pm at the Farr Community Hall.The main points for the meeting include:        1    A report by the Chair on SCBF activities    2    Q&A session, open discussion, feedback from membersTo allow the AGM to take place we must have at least 20 members present at the meeting (including proxy votes). If you are unable to attend the AGM please appoint a proxy as this will allow the meeting to proceed if we have insufficient members show.A Proxy Appointment Form must be received 48 hours before the AGM and can be emailed to cosec@strathnairncbf.com. We had to cancel the December 2021 AGM as we failed to meet the minimum requirement so your help is very much appreciated in this regard. The proxy form, agenda and chair report can all be found here. If there are particular concerns, issues, questions that you want to raise please submit these prior to the meeting so that we have time to provide a proper response. You can submit these to cosec@strathnairncbf.com. All queries remain confidential.

SCBF are seeking community members to become Directors. Please contact Nick Willetts on cosec@strathnairncbf.com to find out more.

2023 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF THE STRATHNAIRN COMMUNITY BENEFIT FUND You are invited to the 2023 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the SCBF Monday 6th November at 7 pm at the Farr Community Hall.The main points for the meeting include:        1    A report by the Chair on SCBF activities    2    Q&A session, open discussion, feedback from membersTo allow the AGM to take place we must have at least 20 members present at the meeting (including proxy votes). If you are unable to attend the AGM please appoint a proxy as this will allow the meeting to proceed if we have insufficient members show.A Proxy Appointment Form must be received 48 hours before the AGM and can be emailed to cosec@strathnairncbf.com. We had to cancel the December 2021 AGM as we failed to meet the minimum requirement so your help is very much appreciated in this regard. The proxy form, agenda and chair report can all be found here. If there are particular concerns, issues, questions that you want to raise please submit these prior to the meeting so that we have time to provide a proper response. You can submit these to cosec@strathnairncbf.com. All queries remain confidential.

With the recent hiring of a dedicated Community Development Officer the SCBF Directors have reviewed the Investment Fund and the potential use of the money in the fund. As a reminder the Investment Fund is currently sitting at 1.1 million pounds, and its purpose is to have money available for capital projects – this simply means having money for large purchases (example land) or refurbishment of existing buildings or building new buildings et cetera. In addition the Investment Fund secures the community’s future needs when windfarm revenues cease (but this only occurs much further into the future). The money in the Investment Fund is not used for the community’s annual group or individual grants – the money for this is covered by the annual windfarm payments. The residents of Strathnairn should feel confident that the SCBF will continue to have sufficient funds from the annual windfarm payments to support the annual group and individual grant requirements. The SCBF Directors are of the belief that the Investment Fund should be used to create the greatest benefit for the greatest number of residents. And therefore have concluded that the majority of the money in the Investment Fund should be earmarked for the Hub. The idea of the Hub is supported by the CAP (Community Action Plan). Obviously what the Hub will actually be is still to discussed and finalized by the community and this involves the residents of Strathnairn and the community groups. The SCBF Directors do not have a position on the Hub (nor should we) but we do want to communicate that money is available to allow the Hub discussion to progress within the community. As this is such an important position to take the SCBF Directors are asking for feedback from the SCBF members. This is community money and the Board needs your input on whether this approach is supported (or not) by our members. We would appreciate your feedback before proceeding on this important issue by emailing cosec@strathnairncbf.com with your thoughts or contacting one of the SCBF Directors.

SCBF have made some changes to both the Home Heating Grant & the Energy Efficiency Grants. Home Heating Grant The £500 Home Heating Grant has been updated to reflect the changes in Net Household Income, which the Scottish Government has adjusted for 2023. This will increase the eligibility for a number of households. The SCBF encourage eligible residents to apply, we have the funds available as provided by the various windfarm operators. If you have questions on the form or require assistance with completing the form please contact the SCBF at cosec@strathnairncbf.com, or alternatively on 07858688355. The updated form is available below. Home Heating Grant Application Energy Efficiency Improvement Grant The SCBF has also made changes to the Energy Efficiency Improvement Grant to now cover home energy retention. As a result more activities are covered. The grant now covers, up to a maximum of £500, the following: Installation of new or additional home insulation material Double or triple glazing installation to replace single glazing Double or triple glazing installation to replace existing double glazing in a home that is pre 2002 Boiler replacement Replacement of non LED household lightbulbs (limited to £200) There are some exceptions and that information can be found on the form. The updated form is available below. Energy Efficiency Improvement Grant

2022 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF THE STRATHNAIRN COMMUNITY BENEFIT FUND All members are invited to the 2022 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the SCBF Thursday 27 October at 7 pm at the Farr Community Hall. The main points for the meeting include:    1    Standing down of all Directors, announcing which Members will take up appointments as Directors / re-election            We continue our search for new Directors to ensure we have good representation of views from the members            Without the minimum number of Directors we can not make grant decisions which in turn impacts the community    2    A report by the Chair on SCBF activities    3    Q&A session, open discussion, feedback from members To allow the AGM to take place we must have at least 20 members present at the meeting (including proxy votes). If you are unable to attend the AGM please appoint a proxy as this will allow the meeting to proceed if we have insufficient members show.A Proxy Appointment Form must be received 48 hours before the AGM and can be emailed to cosec@strathnairncbf.com.Please find the link to the Proxy Form & Agenda here.We had to cancel the December 2021 AGM as we failed to meet the minimum requirement so your help is very much appreciated in this regard. If there are particular concerns, issues, questions that you want to raise please submit these prior to the meeting so that we have time to provide a proper response. You can submit these to cosec@strathnairncbf.com. All queries remain confidential. We look forward to meeting with you.

The SCBF Board of Directors have worked together to develop a Strategy for the SCBF and this can be found here. We will review and update this annually to ensure we incorporate feedback from our members, community groups and Strathnairn residents; to reflect changes in how funds are utilised and any changes in the priorities of Strathnairn. A copy of this will be on the website and included in the next newsletter. The Board believes it is important to have a clear strategy that communicates how we operate and that we are transparent to all the stakeholders. Thank youMark BessellChairperson, SCBF

The SCBF AGM scheduled for the 13 December 2021 could not take place as insufficient members attended for the meeting to be quorate. The AGM has been rescheduled for Thursday 20 January 2022 at 7.00pm via Zoom. Details of how to join the meeting have been sent by email or post (where we don’t hold an email address) to members. If you are not a member and wish to join the meeting, please complete a membership form and send it to cosec@strathnairncbf.com

INTRODUCTIONSCBF is a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity. It distributes funding for the benefit of the community of Strathnairn derived from four windfarms and a hydroelectric scheme. Total income is expected to be approximately £300,000 in the financial year to August 2022. The grant programme consists of both General and Individual grants. The General grants include funding to community groups and for community activities. Whereas Individuals grants include:• Energy Efficiency Grants• Renewable Technology Grants• Hardship Grants• Education Grants• Other grants that may be created in the future Grant decisions and other matters of business are made by the Board of volunteer Directors who meet once a month.Until the end of February 2022 a secretariat service is provided by Foundation Scotland. The SCBF Board is now seeking an alternative provider of services to ensure a smooth handover by the current provider. SERVICES REQUIRED• Confidentiality is critical to the position as the SCBF reviews grant applications from members of the community and therefore their privacy must to respected at all times• Grants (to organisations and individuals): Acknowledge and log applications; check the grant for completeness (and returning the application when not complete and guiding the applicant accordingly) prior to circulating to the Board; correspondence on queries raised by the Board; award notifications; initiate payments (bank transfers and cheque). Over time the aim will be to push for bank transfers only• Delegated Grants (Currently limited to Individual Education Grants): Acknowledge and log applications; check documentation and eligibility; award letters; initiate payments (bank transfers and cheque)• Board Meetings: Produce agenda (in consultation with the Chair); circulate papers; generate minutes (full and summary); execute and monitor follow up actions as required• Finance: Maintain accounting records; reconcile the bank balance monthly; produce monthly report on expenditure plus spend against anticipated commitments; provide year end information and support files to the independent examiner• Company: Updates to Companies House and OSCR records; annual returns; Annual General Meeting administration, membership records• Website: Updates to the website (wordpress); upload minutes, update and upload grant forms etc• Miscellaneous: Update documentation as required, development of policies, generate reports to windfarm funders, annual report, general correspondence, community consultation meetings• Support to existing Directors and onboarding of new Directors• Administrative support as required SKILLS• Financial skills to manage and report on the income and annual expenditure• Good communication skills as dealing with groups and members of the community• Self-starting and ability to work independently while still delivering on the job requirements• Some knowledge of or ability to learn voluntary sector governance, including OSCR requirements, Companies House requirements, and good practice in the third sector. Training to be offered as required• Ability to bring new ideas and improvements to the Board to effect positive impact on the community• IT skills including website updating, spreadsheets and word processing. Training to be offered as required It is anticipated that four days per month (or 1 full day per week) will be sufficient to provide the service. This reflects the time requirements to meet the work requirements and therefore working hours are completely flexible for the applicant. Included is the monthly Director’s meeting that currently takes place in the evenings over Zoom; and the Annual General Meeting which is normally a physical meeting with members. Work is home based with the possible exception of the monthly meetings that may on occasion be face to face. The secretary will be contracted on a self-employed basis (or via an agency) at an agreed daily rate.Expenses directly incurred in the delivery of services will be reimbursed. APPLICATIONTo apply for this position, please write to cosec@strathnairncbf.comPlease include:• A covering letter which outlines your relevant experience• The daily rate you would charge to provide the above services• Your CVThe deadline for applications is 12 noon on Monday 10 January 2022.If you have any queries about the role, please contact Bea Jefferson at cosec@strathnairncbf.com or 07554 695 152

Members are invited to attend the SCBF AGM, taking place at 7pm on Monday 13th December 2021 at Farr Community Hall. All members will shortly receive an invitation by post or email. If you would like to attend, but are not currently a member, please complete a membership form (available on the documents page) and return it to cosec@strathnairncbf.com before the meeting.

I would like to communicate to everyone a number of changes that have recently occurred with the SCBF to ensure we keep everybody updated. Ian Hunt has agreed to step down as the Chair of the SCBF, and fortunately is remaining as a Director which will allow the Board to continue to benefit from his extensive knowledge and experience.I have replaced Ian, as the Interim Chair, for an initial period of eight months. Why eight months? This is to allow sufficient time to make a number of changes which I will address below. In addition, all of the Directors have made the same commitment to see these changes through over the next eight months. I am grateful to Jayne, Paul, Ian and Darren for making this commitment. As everyone is aware these roles are voluntary, there is a lot of work needs to be done so, we need to do things differently as there is only a limited about of personal time that can be dedicated by the Directors, and without the Directors there is no SCBF.Certainly, there will be changes some of which may raise eyebrows, some will be seamless and some will have a negative impact. First off we have been informed by Foundation Scotland that the £200 energy grant is not a charitable grant; this grant which all households have been eligible for will cease as of the end of this year. The cancelation of this much subscribed grant could not have happened at a worse time with the recent increase in energy prices. The decision to do so was not taken lightly and debated at length by the Directors. Unfortunately, we have clear guidance, both verbally and in writing, that this grant does not meet the criteria for a charitable grant and the SCBF is out with its charter to continue with it. A copy of the Foundation Scotland letter is on the SCBF website which provides further explanation. The next question is what can be done to address this loss? We are looking at a number of options with a clear focus on what can be done to create new grants that meet the charitable criteria with a particular focus on those who may need additional assistance to cover fuel costs. This is a top priority.Additional changes that we are working on:a. Increased communication to members, to the other community groups and with the residents in general. For the members we would like to complement the Summary Minutes with updates of items of interest, things that are being worked on et cetera. For the community groups we will start with the bigger groups first and establish initial face to face meetings with a goal to better understand the needs and goals of those groups and to relay information on what the SCBF can and cannot do. The groups can expect a clear and transparent dialogue from the SCBF – that does not mean that we will always agree or be able to fund every request but that we will try to understand their needs and assist where possible. Finally with the community at large we need to update everyone on big issues and concerns – what funds are available this year? What role does the SCBF play in the upcoming CAP? What is the community expecting from the SCBF? Again, this is about having a conversation.b. How we conduct business. Currently the SCBF is spending a majority of its time on administrative issues, review of grants etc. As a result, a majority of meeting time is spent on approval of grants and questions that arise related to these grants. This will have to overhauled so that grant submissions are supplied with all the necessary information, that the SCBF forms are clear and we can no longer review the grants on a monthly basis but setting up an alternative review schedule. This means that the SCBF will have the time to review future issues that have longer term impact. Will we continue to approve grants? Absolutely but we need everyone’s assistance to ensure quality submissions and patience on approval times. This is one reason to reach out to the community groups to have open communications to iron out issues prior to grant submissions.It is highly likely that Foundation Scotland’s services will withdraw their services early next year. Foundation Scotland provide all of the administration support, documents, distribution of grants etc. for us. Without them, or something similar, we can not function. This will be a critical issue to resolve in the coming months and more information to follow.The Annual General Meeting is planned for December 16th which will either be via Zoom or with some luck the Farr Hall, more to follow as we sort out the details. All of the Directors look forward to meeting and listening to yourselves.ThanksMark BessellInterim Chair

Application forms for Education Grants are now available for the academic year starting August 2021. A single grant of £300 per academic year is available to support education costs, not funded by statutory provision, of children and young people aged 21 and under who are permanent residents of the Strathnairn Community Council area. The grant is available to children and young people in secondary education, further education, higher education and those undertaking apprenticeships. Strathnairn Community Benefit Fund make awards to the Parent Councils of Farr and Daviot Primary Schools to assist with non-statutory education costs. Therefore, in order to ensure all primary pupils in Strathnairn can benefit, P1-P7 pupils not attending Farr or Daviot schools are eligible to apply direct to the Fund for an Education Grant.

The Strathnairn Community Benefit Fund (SCBF) is looking for engaged community members to growtheir team of Directors. There is one meeting a month on a Thursday, currently online, with the hope to be in person when possible. If you are interested in learning more, please get in touch: cosec@strathnairncbf.com

Launch of Stronelairg & Dunmaglass Wind Farms Scholarship Fund —————Press Release————— New Scholarship Fund Opens for Applications Stronelairg & Dunmaglass Wind Farms are pleased to announce the launch of a new Scholarship Fund to support young people studying a STEM course at university. The scholarship fund has been created to support young people with their expenses by reducing their student loan, with the aims of creating a pool of well-trained and experienced professionals, transforming career prospects in the local area and positively impacting future generations. The Fund is now open and the deadline for applications is 13th September. Two scholarships of £5,000 will be awarded every year for three years to support students who are studying one or a combination of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees in the coming academic year. The funds are paid towards the scholar’s student loan, reducing the amount needing to be repaid when graduating. To be eligible applicants need to live in one of the surrounding community council areas: Stratherrick and Foyers Strathdearn Strathnairn Laggan Fort Augustus and Glenmoriston Spean Bridge, Roy Bridge and Achnacarry Glengarry Applicants also need to be taking a STEM course at a UK college or university in the 2023/24 academic year and in receipt of a loan from the Student Loans Company in the same year. In addition to the local scholarships, Stronelairg & Dunmaglass Wind Farms are also investing directly into education within renewables by supporting one scholarship of £10,000, along with providing operational industry expertise from the wind farm, which will be made every year for three years to post-graduates studying for an MSc in Wind Energy at the University of Strathclyde. “We value community impact and are committed to developing the STEM workforce. We are delighted to be able to offer these scholarships to people in the local area as well as those entering the renewables profession. These scholarships support our values by contributing to the global challenge of achieving net zero and delivering a long-term commitment to communities living near our sites” said Stephen Lilley, Director of Stronelairg Wind Farm Ltd & Dunmaglass Wind Farm Ltd. Stronelairg and Dunmaglass Wind Farms are two joint ventures between SSE Renewables and Greencoat UK Wind Plc. Stronelairg Wind Farm is located in the Monadhliath mountain range near to Loch Ness on the Garrogie Estate south east of Fort Augustus. Dunmaglass Wind Farm is 25km south of Inverness on the Dunmaglass Estate. Combined, they have 99 turbines with an installed capacity of 322MW. The wind farms have contributed significantly to the social and economic benefit of the local area and the Highlands since construction, including job creation and skills training, community hubs and social housing. Community benefit is central to both Stronelairg & Dunmaglass Wind Farm’s plans, and they are expanding on the current £34m lifetime community fund value already committed by offering these local scholarships grants. More details on criteria and the application process are available on the SSE Renewables website, www.sserenewables.com/communities/scholarship-funds. Photo – Left to Right – Stronelairg Wind Farm Site Supervisor Peter MacPherson and Dunmaglass Wind Farm Site Supervisor Brian MacLeod