London hospice children share in £2.8 million from Lottery

Area:

London

Programme:

Reaching Communities

Release date:

16 10 2012

Terminally ill children in London and West Essex, young people with autism and profound learning disabilities in North London and families in Greenwich affected by substance misuse are just some of the people who will benefit from a share of £2.8 million in Lottery good cause funding.

Eleven projects across the capital will receive Reaching Communities money from the Big Lottery Fund this month to help London’s most in need communities.

Haven House Children’s Hospice will be making music with £281,932 to make a big difference from babies through the childhood years to young people aged 19 who have life limiting and terminal illnesses, disabled children in London and West Essex. Through their ‘Better, Happier Lives’ scheme, the hospice will provide essential therapy support through stimulating music and play for around 175 children over the next three years.

The Hospice, founded in 1995, will be able to extend the support on offer to children and their families who will be access to a free new toy loan scheme providing specialist toys and equipment that can be used at home.  Friday nights will never be the same again, there will be a new club which children from the hospice and others can enjoy whilst using the sensory room, computers and games consoles together. Young siblings will also be able to join in via the soft-play area along with their parents and carers.

Mike Palfreman, Chief Executive, Haven House Children’s Hospice said: “This generous grant from the Big Lottery Fund will enable us to dramatically improve the lives of life-limited children across our catchment area. Our ‘Better, Happier Lives’ project meets a real need of children and families in our local area.”

In North London, over a hundred children and young adults up to the age of 30 with profound learning disabilities or autism will be supported by Kith and Kids (K&K) which receives £277,013. A friendship scheme and physical exercise classes are just two of the activities that have been requested by the young people supported by K&K to help them have a fun and sociable life with others local to them whilst also being active and healthy.

During the school holidays up to 50 participants will each be supported by two volunteers whilst they attend one or two week projects which could include music, drama, crafts and video workshops. K&K will works with 780 volunteers who are aiming to gain confidence in social events or developing skills suitable for employment or students seeking a better understanding of people with learning disabilities before starting work in the sector.

Marjolein de Vries, Director, Kith & Kids said: “This grant from the Big Lottery Fund will enable us to train up hundreds of volunteers, who in turn will support over a hundred young people and adults with learning disabilities to develop skills and friendships, and to improve their fitness through our new healthy living activities.”

Over in Greenwich, families affected by substance misuse will be supported by ADFAM National for its Whole Family Recovery project which receives £295,575. Today’s funding will be used to train family members as Volunteer Recovery Champions to inspire other families trying to recover from the negative impact of drug and alcohol abuse by a family member. ADFAM and the Champions will also provide advice and information through support groups, clinics and drop-in services.

Alison Rowe, Big Lottery Fund Head of Region London said: “I am delighted that through Reaching Communities, we can help organisations to provide vital support that will make a difference to so many families’ lives. Organisations working with those most in need can find out more about Lottery funding available at www.biglotteryfund.org.uk.”

The eleven projects in London sharing in more than £2.8 million from the Big Lottery Fund today are:

Further information

Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 020 7211 1888

Out of hours media contact: 07867 500 572

Full details of the Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available on the website: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk

Ask BIG a question here: https://ask.biglotteryfund.org.uk

Follow BIG on Twitter: www.twitter.com/BigLotteryFund #BIGlf

Find BIG on facebook: www.facebook.com/BigLotteryFund

Notes to Editors

• The Big Lottery Fund (BIG), the largest distributor of National Lottery good cause funding, is responsible for giving out 40% of the money raised for good causes by the National Lottery.
• BIG is committed to bringing real improvements to communities and the lives of people most in need and has been rolling out grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK. Since June 2004 BIG has awarded over £4.4bn.
• The Fund was formally established by Parliament on 1 December 2006.
• Since the National Lottery began in 1994, 28p from every pound spent by the public has gone to good causes. As a result, over £28 billion has now been raised and more than 383,000 grants awarded across arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.

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