Community groups will share £1.2 million as part of the National Lottery’s 25th birthday
New funding has been revealed to mark a major funder’s big birthday.
As the National Lottery gets ready to celebrate its 25th Birthday later this month, groups from across Scotland are today (Friday 1 November) marking the occasion by sharing in £1.2 million of good cause funding.
Across the country 173 local community, sport and arts groups are enjoying a share of this bumper package of National Lottery Awards for All grants totalling £1,245,834.
Since the first National Lottery draw on 19 November 1994, over £3.1 billion has been invested into more than 64,000 good causes in Scotland, thanks to National Lottery players.
Amongst the groups adding to this total is Parkhead Youth Project which today receives an award of £9,712. Like the National Lottery, the group is celebrating its 25th anniversary and plans to use today’s funding to deliver a series of events run by and for young people.
Project manager Liz Mitchell said: “We have been lucky enough to benefit from various National Lottery funds over the years. This latest award from National Lottery Awards for All is a particularly special one because, like the National Lottery, Parkhead Youth Project is celebrating 25 years of providing activities and support to the young people in Parkhead and surrounding communities. This award will allow young people to get together on a weekly basis and plan activities and events to celebrate with the community.
“One of the biggest impacts of our funding over the years is that we now have some young people from our early programmes on our board of directors and they have become the decision makers we always wanted them to be.”
Older people in West Lothian will be getting out and about to enjoy the fresh air and meet new friends as Queensferry Churches’ Care in the Community (QCCC) receives £6,800 to purchase a trishaw to take them out on cycling trips. Part of the Cycling Without Age movement, the project will tackle loneliness and isolation faced by 60 older people.
Carol Findlay, fundraising and PR coordinator at QCCC, said: “We are delighted with our National Lottery Awards for All grant which will help us to put in an order for our very own trishaw. This will have space for two passengers to feel the wind in their hair out on local adventures, whether to see one of the cruise liners or to have an ice cream at a local shop. We are all very excited to be having trips round Queensferry in style very soon.”
Forth Valley Flyers, a sports club providing activities for people with physical, sensory and learning disabilities, prove that sometimes the smallest amounts of National Lottery money can make the biggest impact as they pick up £3,276 to help with coaching costs.
Forth Valley Flyers chairperson, Heather Ross, said: “The whole club is delighted to receive a grant from National Lottery Awards For All. This will enable us to push forward with our plans to offer more opportunities for those with a disability to get involved in athletics. More importantly it will boost confidence, skills and employment opportunities of those who will receive the training to become new coaches.”
In Dumfries, more people than ever will be singing their hearts out as Electric Theatre Workshop LTD receives £8,000 to bring people together as part of the Dumfries Community Choir, the biggest vocal ensemble in southern Scotland.
Diane Little-Moss, from Dumfries Community Choir, said: “Dumfries and Galloway sings is a brilliant opportunity for us to build on the legacy of our existing work and take it throughout our rural region and get even more people singing.”
The National Lottery’s 25th birthday is a moment to celebrate the extraordinary impact The National Lottery has had on the UK, and to say thank you to National Lottery players for contributing around £30 million to good causes every week.
National Lottery Awards for All Scotland awards grants of between £300 and £10,000 to local groups, with more information on the website or on 0300 123 7110.
