Given the significant suffering of financial repercussions experienced by social and community clubs during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Planning Authority, together with the Ministry for the Environment, Climate Change and Planning, are launching a new restoration and maintenance scheme.
This was announced by the Minister for the Environment, Climate Change and Planning Aaron Farrugia who said that such clubs play an integral role in the social fabric of our towns, villages, and society as a whole.
The minister explained that with an allocated fund of €250,000, social and local community clubs may be awarded up to €5,000. He said that the aim of the recently launched ‘Irrestawra l-Każin’ grant scheme is to provide financial assistance at a time when such clubs have had to deal with a considerable reduction in their income, but still carry out maintenance works. “Assistance is being given to ensure that together as families, businesses, and voluntary organisations, we emerge even stronger from the pandemic. Most of the buildings eligible for this scheme are also of great architectural value and cultural importance”, said Minister Farrugia.
Martin Saliba, Chairperson of the Executive Council at the Planning Authority, said that, “Social and local community clubs are visited by regulars and bring communities together. We felt the need to help them out in their financial struggle, and therefore developed this scheme which falls under the recently launched ‘Irrestawra’ series of schemes. All such schemes have had a very good take-up and I believe that ‘Irrestawra l-Każin’ will be no different”.
Eligible works are related to the maintenance of the premises and such works may either already have been carried out, are still in progress, or may still need to be carried out, such that all receipts are presented to the Planning Authority by 15th December 2021.
Applications open on September 22 and funding will be awarded on a first-come first-served basis. The scheme will remain open until November 30, or until the allocated budget is used up.
The conditions applicable to the scheme are available at pa.org.mt/irrestawra-kazin. Further information on the scheme can be obtained by calling 22901554/22901555 or by emailing irrestawrakazin@pa.org.mt.
