Grant Awards

Douglas Community Project Group £512.85 - contribution to village planters

Douglas Community Development Group £1680 towards a village defibrillator.

Douglas Community Project Group £2500 to erect a statue in the village

Douglas REAL Group £500 toward the GIG in the Park event held in Summer 2018

Douglas Water Golf Club £2000 towards a second hand set of gang mowers

Friends of the Lady Home Hospital £2000 furnishing new extension (still to be verified)

Douglas Valley Church £1260.00 towards Drum display units

Douglas Water & Rigside Pensioners £425

The Douglas Mothers and Toddlers Group £4654.67

The Village Christmas Tree Lights £950.00

The Douglas Old Peoples Welfare Group £1300.00

The Douglas Playpark BMX and playground equipment £110,000

LEAF (Local Environmental Action Force) facilities for workshop £2159.99

Douglas Victoria Bowling Club £11,000 for improvements to clubhouse

The Douglas Explorers £2500 for the 2015 Jamboree expedition

The Rigside Primary School £19,500 - playground improvements

The Rigside Playparks Group £22,588 - village playground improvements

The Village of Douglas Christmas Lights £20000

Glespin Village Hall were awarded £799 to purchase a floor polisher

Douglas Ecoheat has been awarded £5779.19 to enable completion of the boiler house project benefiting the Community Centre and Bowling Club

The Douglas Fun Raisers Group - has been awarded £5760.00 for the staging of their 'Strickly Come Dancing' Event in April 2012 - all funds raised from this event will be awarded to the Douglas Heritage Museum Trust.

The Douglas Heritage Museum Trust - has been awarded £11,017.44 which will pay for the installation of secondary glazing in this important listed property.

The St Brides Community Centre has been awarded £28,793.22 for the purchasing of gym and exercise equipment for the new gym suite in the St Brides rooms.

The Douglas Water Golf Club has been awarded £25,500 to assist in the purchasing of new mowing equipment for the fairways.

The Douglas Valley Church has been awarded £11,284.40 to purchase audio & visual equipment to assist members of the congregation who have sight or hearing difficulties.

The Douglas Valley Bowling Club has been awarded £6141.60 to purchase a new mowing machine for the bowling green.

The Douglas Folk Festival has been awarded £3000.00 which has been used to provide assistance in putting on the Folk Festival held in Douglas in September 2011.

The Douglas Scouts were awarded £650.00 to contribute to their Netherlands experience earlier in the year.

The Douglas Primary School has been awarded £5000 to create a pathway network on the land down to the river

The Douglas Horticultural Society have been awarded £472.50 for some jute matting that can be laid on the floor of the Douglas Primary School hall during the annual event.

The Blackwood Court have been awarded £3000.00 to enable the purchase of 10 new armchairs for the residents and

The Douglas Dale Players have been awarded £800.00 for the purchase of 40 foldable chairs that can be used both at the local primary school and within the St Brides Community Centre. (Feb '11)

The St Brides Community Centre have been awarded £5,835.84 for the purchase of a wooden modular staging set - this will be used principally in the community centre but may also be useful at other venues that may require a stage. (Feb'11)

Total Grants awarded to date £324,696.17

About The Mainshill Trust

When Planning Permission was granted for the Mainshill Surface Coal Mine, Douglas & Angus Estates and Scottish Coal obtained agreement from South Lanarkshire Council that the community trust contributions associated with the scheme, should be channeled into a Trust, established specifically to benefit the village of Douglas, the immediate surrounding area and those people mostly likely to affected by the scheme.

The establishment of a Community Trust for the specific benefit of Douglas was a prerequisite to the development of Mainshill by the Douglas-Home Family and is being funded separately by both Scottish Coal and Douglas and Angus Estates - payments made are based on the tonnage of coal sold from the site.

The Mainshill coaling operation commenced in June 2010 and the Trust (known as the “Mainshill Trust”) was established.

The Mainshill coaling operations have now ceased and the site has been reinstated to woodland, over the lifetime of the coaling operations a fund of £344,074.17 was received; to date £324,696.17 has been awarded to the benefit the local Community.

The Trustees hope that the Trust Fund will be used in part for one, or a number of, “Landmark Projects” but they are also keen to assist with smaller projects that will have a positive benefit to community life.

Who Can Apply

Any group can apply, as long as they meet the following criteria;-

Reside in Douglas, (the map outlining the area covered by the Trust, can be viewed, by contacting the Chair).
Meet the trust purposes.
Have a bank account in the name of that Organisation, with two authorised signatories.
Have a written constitution.
Maintain proper financial records that are certified annually.
Be open to inspection by official representatives of the Mainshill Trust on requst.

Full details are on the Application Form (click the words 'Download Application Form' below to download a pdf form):

Download Application Form

How Much can you apply for?

The Trust will consider each application individually but would hope, (especially for larger amounts) that any applications made are part of a funding package, with applications made to other agencies and partners alongside the groups own fundrasing efforts.

When can you apply?

The Trustees hope to meet again in November 2023 to consider applications. The table below lists the applications annual deadlines with meetings planned shortly after these deadlines. In normal years meetings are to be planned for June and Nov/ December.

Application Deadlines

31st May

31st October

Things to remember

Your groups idea/project must meet the Trust’s purposes.
That you have all the supporting documentation required.
The Trust, in certain circumstances, particularly for grants over £1000, the Tustees may impose additional conditions on a grant award. For example, the Trust may ask a group to come and meet with them to discuss their ideas or they may ensure that the project is being properly managed by a qualified person.
The Trust wil consider whether the ongoing maintenance/ revenue consequences of the project have been addressed.
Payment of any grant awarded from the Mainshill Trust will be made only on the production of satisfactory evidence that (a) the expenditure has been incurred or committed, as approved eg. copy invoice, receipt or order and that (b) a complete funding package as been secured in relation to the project as a whole.

Trust Purposes

The Trust shall operate for the advancement of the following purposes for the public benefit within the community of Douglas, all as more particularly shown in the area delineated in red on the plan attached (the “Area of Benefit”)

the advancement of citizenship or community development; (including rural or urban regeneration and the promotion of civic responsibility, volunteering, the voluntary sector or the effectiveness or efficiency of charities)
the provision or improvement of recreational or community facilities, or the Organisation of recreational activities, with the object of improving the conditions of life for the persons for whom the facilities or activities are primarily intended; and only in relation to recreational facilities or activities which are available to members of the public at large
the advancement of public participation in sport, (the term “sport” means sport which involves physical skill and exertion)
the advancement of environmental protection or improvement
the advancement of the arts, heritage, culture or science
advancement of education and other social purposes beneficial to a community
the promotion or creation of environmental schemes and improvements considered appropriate by the Trustees which promote the enhancement of the character and quality of the Area of Benefit; and
the advancement of any of the above purposes by the giving of grants or the provision of funding to persons, undertaking projects, initiatives and/or activities which are wholly charitable within the meaning of Section 505 of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 as amended and section 7 of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 or any statutory amendment or re-enactment thereof.

I want to make an application?

Download the application form by clicking on the words 'Download Application Form' found above under the 'Who can apply' section or
Request an application form, from Joy Hitchcock, Estates Office, Newmains Farm, Douglas, ML11 0RH Tel:01555 851536
Fill out the application and attach all the appropriate documentation
Return to the above address by the appropriate deadline.
The trustees will inform you in writing, within two weeks of their meeting.

The Trustees

The Mainshill Trust currently has 5 trustees, they are:-

Mr R Mitchell - Chairperson
Dr R Flowerdew
Mr I Bairner
Mr C Ortlepp
Mr H Birch

Mainshill Trust

A Charity Registered in Scotland

Scottish Charity Number SC042399