PENZANCE Council has recently awarded over £14,000 in grant funding to local community organisations in the run up to the festive season.

Councillors resolved to support six grant applications for a range of upcoming events and ongoing projects, including Christmas lights and a popular midwinter festival.

This brings the total amount of grant funding awarded by Penzance Council in this financial year to more than £60,000, supporting 20 varied community organisations to deliver everything from St Piran’s Day celebrations to hot meals for those in need.

Successful grant recipients in this latest round of funding include Montol Festival, Newlyn Harbour Lights, PZ Studios, Treneere Team Spirit, Quiet Connections and Heamoor Community Interest Organisation.

Taking place on December 21, Montol is an annual arts and community festival in Penzance, which celebrates the midwinter solstice, Cornish midwinter traditions of the past, and customs associated with Old Christmas.

With Montol falling on a Saturday this year, the event is expected to be more popular than ever. The £5,000 of grant funding from Penzance Council awarded to the Montol Organising Committee will be used to ensure the festival is enjoyed safely by visitors and members of the local community.

Aaron Broadhurst from Montol Organising Committee said: “In a world of spiralling costs, the money will ensure that this year’s festival shines as brightly as ever: bigger, more inclusive and safer than before.”

Another much-anticipated event benefitting from funding is the Newlyn Harbour Christmas Lights Switch On, taking place this year on Friday, December 6.

The evening attracts a huge crowd to watch a spectacular fireworks display over the harbour, as the iconic Christmas lights are switched on. The £6,000 of grant funding awarded to Newlyn Harbour Lights will be used to deliver a fireworks display to rival previous years, whilst being deliberately quieter.

Judith Goodwin from Newlyn Harbour Lights commented: “Their very generous grant will enable us to fund the spectacular hybrid (a mix of quiet and traditional) fireworks display that marks the official start of Christmas in Newlyn - a much-anticipated event by the whole community and beyond!”

A grant of £1,500 will help Treneere Team Spirit make the 10th anniversary of Treneere Christmas lights a bigger and brighter display than ever before. The money will be spent on lights and decorations for the annual display that has become so popular within the tight-knit community.

Trudi Lobb, Chair of Treneere Team Spirit, shared: “Every year, our community comes together to enjoy this festive evening, and with the wonderful support from Penzance Council and others, this year’s celebration is set to be the best one yet!”

There will be Christmas cheer in Heamoor as well again this year, thanks to the Heamoor Community Interest Organisation, who started their festive light displays around the village five years ago.

Penzance Council have awarded Heamoor CIO a grant of £500 to replace some of those original lights, ensuring that Heamoor continues to shine bright this Christmas.

Beyond the festive season, grant funding will help a group of local artists expand into new premises, creating a vibrant new venue in centre of town.

The Wharfside Art Hub – an artist-led exhibition and event space – is being set up by PZ Studios, a group of Penzance based artists who want to promote Penzance as a thriving art community.

Mayor of Penzance, Cllr Stephen Reynolds commented: “Penzance Council are pleased to support PZ Studios with a grant of £998, which will be used to purchase portable MDF display boards and extra lighting for a new pop-up gallery space in Wharfside Shopping Centre.

“The art community is thriving in the parish of Penzance, and this new gallery has the potential to raise the profile of hundreds of artists over the next two years by offering an affordable space to showcase their work, whilst at the same time bringing footfall back into an empty retail unit.” 

Penzance Council awarded a grant of £254 for weekly meet ups aimed at quiet and socially anxious people.

Quiet Connections aims to improve social, psychological and subjective wellbeing with and for quiet people through enhancing social connectedness.

Hayley Stanton, founder of Quiet Connections CIC, commented: “This grant enables us to provide a warm, welcoming, and understanding space for quiet individuals – those who are introverted, sensitive, shy or experiencing social anxiety– in the Penzance area.

“For many of our members, these Meet Ups are invaluable, offering not only social connections but also a sense of belonging that is often hard to find elsewhere. With this grant, we can nurture these connections through weekly Meet Ups at The Lescudjack Centre, and build a community that supports the wellbeing of everyone involved.”

Penzance Council provides grants to local community groups and charities who are working to benefit residents and Parish environment – find out more about how to apply online: www.penzance-tc.gov.uk/grants/ or contact the council offices (Tel: 01736 363405, Email: [email protected])

With the total grant funding budget now allocated for this year, new grant applications are encouraged from April 2025 ahead of the start of the 2025/26 financial year.