‘It was a special moment when we realised we had reached that magic figure,’ said Heart of the Community Coordinator Jessica Taylor-McKaig.
The autumnal Step Challenge, the second such event this year, saw 20 colleagues awarded a Heart of the Community donation to the local cause of their choice, providing a £2,100 boost and pushing the fund over the £2 million mark.
But reaching the milestone wasn’t the goal of the Step Challenge, said Taylor-McKaig.
‘Our aim, as with the community fund itself, was to support the people we live and work alongside in whatever way we can.’
13 years strong
Set up in 2011, Heart of the Community provides grants big and small to groups and organisations in the areas where the company’s farms and facilities are based.
‘We had been giving to local causes long before 2011,’ said Taylor-McKaig, ‘but introduced the fund as a way of bringing more structure and strategic focus.’
From larger donations of between £5,000 and £10,000 to the many smaller grants given, there’s one shared goal: to offer a helping hand where it’s needed most.
‘It could be sports teams looking to provide junior players in remote areas with the same opportunities as those living more centrally or a community council looking to deliver affordable activities for young families.
‘Equally, it could be support for lifeline services such as support with dependency issues, domestic violence, mental wellbeing or heart health – wherever the money will make the most difference.’
Decisions made locally
True to this, colleagues within each area volunteer as Regional Coordinators.
‘We review each application with our Regional Coordinators, drawing on their local knowledge to glean where the funds are needed most,’ said Taylor-McKaig.
There’s also the opportunity for Farm Managers to get involved, with a £500 community allowance annually to give to the local cause(s) of their choosing – a scheme which has delivered a boost of more than £55,000 to date.
Changing with the times
Changes to Heart of the Community, announced last December, have helped ensure the fund is reflective of wider events including the rising cost of living, reduced state funding and council cutbacks.
‘Rather than have one main fund, with applications assessed quarterly, there’s now the opportunity to apply for smaller grants of up to £500 which are reviewed monthly,’ explained Taylor-McKaig.
‘Often, small but speedy injections of cash are needed as opposed to longer-term initiatives, and many local projects have been quick to respond to our £500 awards this year.’
New to 2025
2025 will see the company embrace another novel way of giving, with corporate volunteering during the Island Games.
This biennial international event, to be held in Orkney in July, has already received £10,000 from the fund and the volunteer programme will provide further practical support.
‘Help comes in lots of ways and community support doesn’t always involve money changing hands. It can include the gift of equipment, such as repurposing a workboat or salmon pens, or simply lending a hand, as the Orkney engineering team did over the summer when Orkney RFC needed goal posts at its new pitch.’
As for what comes next, the company has been vocal about its desire to see the fees paid to Crown Estate Scotland invested back into rural Scotland, as has the wider sector.
Scottish Sea Farms Managing Director Jim Gallagher said: ‘Salmon companies pay an increasingly sizeable sum for the right to farm in Scottish seas, money which is currently absorbed by the public purse but which we would like to see redistributed along the coastline to benefit our communities even more.
‘We are fiercely proud of the difference we’ve made via our Heart of the Community Fund, but £2 million is a drop in the ocean compared to what could be invested back into rural Scotland through the money we pay to Crown Estate Scotland.’