24.05.2021
Communities all over Estonia submitted a total of 53 projects to the LHV home repair loan support programme "Who does it?". Six of them were shortlisted for the final round - repair of the roof of the Kangsti village hall, the creation of the Kõmsi Wellness Centre, the renovation of the yard area of Sinimäe Middle School, the modernisation of the Järva-Jaani Fire Brigade Station’s building, the construction of a swing park in Peri Village and the renovation of the Abja Day Centre. As a special prize, LHV will contribute to the painting of the Soometsa Village Hall and the refurbishment of the sports area at the Kohila Manor School.
LHV presented the challenge of "Who does it?" to communities in April, offering a grant fund of EUR 20,000. Due to strong interest, applications were accepted until 7 May. Such a high level of activity was a positive surprise. The most active project submitters were the people of Rapla County. The largest number of projects was submitted from Luunja Rural Municipality. As there were several good grant projects, the jury decided to shortlist six projects and the final selection will be made after the scheduled interviews. LHV also awarded two special prizes.
Kadri Kiisel, Chairman of the Management Board of LHV Bank, said that the competition shows that there are plenty of active communities with good ideas in Estonia. "Thank you to all participants! I am very happy that there are so many good initiatives in Estonia. It was very difficult to choose a single winner, so we decided to highlight several communities. We will make a final decision in June," said Kiisel.
"The projects that stood out in the evaluation were those that were well thought-out, had a tangible community input and were in line with both the grant programme and LHV's wider mission. These are the projects that we have no doubt of being delivered on, and we believe the end result will strengthen and develop the local community," said Kiisel. "There were also quite a few projects submitted to the competition which were in their early stages, where there was an idea and a vision. We encourage communities to work on these ideas so that they can come back to us next year with a more mature plan," Kiisel added.
Nominees of the LHV Home Repair Loan competition "Who does it?" who will be interviewed and shortlisted for the programme's EUR 20,000 grant, are:
MTÜ Kangsti Külaselts: Renovation of the roof of the Kangsti Village Hall and preparation of a construction project
The Kangsti Village Association implements joint projects to diversify the social and cultural life of Kangsti and its neighbouring villages of Kõrgepalu, Viru, Sänna, Matsi, Metstaga, Raudsepa, to educate people, to develop the area and to create a more pleasant living environment. The aim of the submitted project is to get a new roof and a building design for the village hall, so that a more comprehensive renovation of the village hall can begin later.MTÜ Kõmsi Külaselts, establishment of the Kõmsi Wellness Centre
The local village association developing the local village life of Kõmsi and promoting education, culture, social life and business, wants to restore the village sauna and create a community wellness centre. An abandoned boiler room and sauna building in the centre of the village is to be given a new life, with the creation of a communal sauna, a gym, a room for group training and massage therapy.Sinimäe Middle School, schoolyard improvement and creation of a courtyard pavilion
Sinimäe Middle School is a small rural school in Ida-Viru County, where children of both native Estonian and non-Estonian speakers study together. The student-initiated project aims to restore a functional school playground and a pavilion that was destroyed in a fire. It aims to increase the cohesiveness of the school community and strengthen students' entrepreneurship.Järva-Jaani Fire Brigade Association, modernisation of the building of the Järva-Jaani Fire Brigade Station
The fire brigade association bringing together volunteer rescuers has taken on the responsibility to stand up for the safety of the members of their community. The firefighters of Järva-Jaani participate in rescue work and are involved in accident prevention, fire safety and teaching fire extinguishing techniques. The project aims to renovate the company's brigade building and build a new, safer access road for emergency vehicles.MTÜ Peri Külaselts, construction of a swing park in Peri Village
The community of the fast-growing Peri Village wants to build a swing park in the village's historic park, which will become a landmark for their community and develop swinging as part of Estonia's heritage culture. The park, made up of many different swings, is to be built by the joint force of the community members.MTÜ Lõuna-Mulgimaa Puuetega Inimeste Ühing, renovation of the Abja Day Centre
The Association offers all members of the community, including the elderly and people with disabilities, opportunities for daily and leisure activities such as crafts, pottery, cooking, woodwork, etc. in the Abja Day Centre. With the "Open Access to Community Services" project, the association wants to renovate five unused rooms in the day centre and expand the activities available to community members.
Special prizes or projects that have secured a grant:
MTÜ Soometsa Külaselts, Painting the facade of the Soometsa Village Hall The project impressed with its simplicity and thoroughness. The village association needs paint to paint its village hall. LHV's share of the grant is EUR 326.
MTÜ Kohila Mõisakool, renovation of the sports area of the Kohila Manor School A special prize of EUR 2,000 from LHV Youth Bank was awarded to the Kohila Manor School, whose students had drawn up the project themselves, obtained the necessary approvals and are helping to improve their school's sports facilities. The LHV Youth Bank will lend a shoulder.
There is a limited amount of funding available and unfortunately only one project will be selected. If there are any supporters who are also willing to support any of the listed projects, please let LHV know at remondilaen@lhv.ee. LHV is happy to bring together those in need and those who want to help.
‘Who does it?’ is LHV’s Home Repair Loan support programme, which was launched last year when the bank noticed the active community of Leesi Village, which had decided together to breathe new life into its historic market building. LHV supported the Leesi community’s venture with EUR 15,000. This year's "Who does it?" has already raised EUR 20,000. To qualify for the competition, it was not important to have a fully professional construction or business management team available, instead to have motivation and good planning skills. But the most important thing was, as always, to have a good idea and a bold approach. See more: lhv.ee/et/kes-teeb-ara.
LHV Group is the largest domestic financial group and capital provider in Estonia. LHV Group’s key subsidiaries are LHV Pank, LHV Varahaldus, and LHV Kindlustus. LHV employs over 570 people. LHV’s banking services are used by 279,000 clients, the pension funds managed by LHV have 175,000 active clients, and LHV Kindlustus protects a total of 128,000 clients. LHV’s UK branch offers banking infrastructure to 150 international financial services companies, via which LHV’s payment services reach clients around the world.
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