APPLYING for a share of a multi-million pound windfall for West Somerset really can be child's play - especially for Stogursey youngsters, who look set to get a £90,373 new playground. Stogursey Parish Council has made one of the first two successful bids for grants from a £4 million community fund designed to offset the impact of site preparation works for the new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point. The Hinkley Point C Community Impact Mitigation (CIM) Fund, paid for by EDF, includes £2 million specifically for West Somerset, £1 million for Bridgwater and £500,000 for Cannington. Some £24,000 has been reserved for projects which need small grants of up to £1,000 - and specialist help is now on the table for smaller groups worried about filling out application forms and meeting the funding criteria. A separate, additional £500,000 has also been allocated to Stogursey as the host parish for the site preparation works. At last week's meeting of West Somerset Council's cabinet, members recommended the first two bids from the CIM fund - £90,373 for a new playground in Stogursey and a £250,000 grant for a new village hall and playing field in Wembdon - be approved when they go before full council later this month. The new play area still needs planning permission and, if approved, would be built on the site of a previous playground off Burgage Road. Ward member Cllr Chris Morgan said he was thrilled that money was finally about to be paid out to local people. "There have been times in the last seven and a half years when I would never have believed we would be talking about a £90,000 play area," he said. "The children of the village are in dire need of this. "This fund is going to create some fantastic opportunities for both Stogursey and Wembdon." He said it was important to monitor the impact of the Hinkley works to ensure bids were not rejected from groups in areas that were not immediately affected by the works. "As time goes on there may be more areas in West Somerset that are being disenfranchised as a result of the project," he said. "It may not be as clear cut as it seems at the moment." He made his comment after councillors were told two other bids had been rejected by the board overseeing CIM applications. One for repairs to Church House in Crowcombe had failed as the application had not made it clear how the project would help communities whose quality of life was affected by the Hinkley C work. The other, for a £450,000 grant towards the full cost of opening a children's soft play area on the outskirts of Watchet, had been rejected as it had come from an individual and not a community group. Broadly speaking, any community-based organisation which operates within Somerset can apply for funding - providing it can demonstrate Hinkley C will have an impact on the community where the money will be spent. Parish councils and local authority partnerships are also eligible to apply, while facilities which stand to benefit from cash must be open to the public and have a wide public and community benefit. Bidders also need to have a constitution and a bank account and be able to show they have undertaken a community-wide consultation and have a viable business plan. West Somerset and Sedgemoor district councils have agreed a set of "priority impact zones' with EDF Energy, meaning people living closest to the site or transport routes receive priority for funding. Individuals cannot apply for money, and cash will not be given for feasibility studies, sponsorship or fundraising events. Projects which mainly help people outside of the county will also not be eligible, retrospective bids will not be accepted and charities without an existing link to the area will also be excluded from bidding. At last week's meeting, councillors agreed to set aside up to £10,000 to enable Engage West Somerset to provide specialist help to smaller groups applying for grants. Applicants must still make an expression of interest in the first instance to the district council, which will then decide whether to call in Engage to provide additional support during the application process. More information about applying for CIM funding is available online at http://www.westsomersetonline.gov.uk/CIM">www.westsomersetonline.gov.uk/CIM