Healthy dose of funding for South West community groups

Area:

South West England

Programme:

Reaching Communities

Release date:

16 10 2012

A community hub will be created on the Isles of Scilly to help improve the health and well-being of the population following news today of Lottery funding to the South West region totalling nearly £2m.

The Council of the Isles of Scilly is one of eight projects to secure a slice of today’s funding from the Big Lottery Fund’s Reaching Communities programme, which aims to help those most in need and build stronger communities.

Home Start South East Dorset is another project benefiting today – with funding to improve the well-being of children and families in the area.

Council of the Isles of Scilly receives £473,599 to create a health and well-being centre on the main island, St Mary’s, at the former Carn Gwaval primary school. The centre will become a hub of the community – serving Scilly’s two thousand plus residents, and also open to visiting tourists. Concessionary boat services are run from the other islands to

St Mary’s so everyone will have access to the hub. Services and activities, aimed at people of all ages, will include a fitness centre, lifelong learning facility, memory cafe, sensory garden, nursery and day centre, gardening and lunch clubs and a children's play area. Higher education courses, such as NVQs, will also be run.

Councillor Richard McCarthy, Chair of Community Services, Council of the Isles of Scilly, said: “The new Health and Wellbeing Centre will provide a key piece of social infrastructure for the islands.It will bring together every generation here on the edge of the Atlantic in one vibrant venue to help build knowledge and develop new skills.

“This centre will encourage islanders of all ages to attain their full potential in so many areas - in physical fitness, in social interaction, in intellectual achievement, in music, play and a whole range of hobbies. It will promote independence and social inclusion for older people and offer support to working families. It will also provide health services and address the causes of ill health.”

And Home-Start South East Dorset is awarded £191,686 to continue its project supporting families with at least one child under five years old in the Bournemouth, Poole and East Dorset areas. It will target those struggling with a range of issues such as low incomes, poor housing conditions, mental and physical health issues and socially isolated parents. The project matches a fully trained volunteer, with childcare experience, to the family with a view to them offering practical and emotional support.

Wendy Staples, Scheme Manager, Home-Start South East Dorset, said: “This funding from the Big Lottery Fund will have a major impact on our charity’s ability to help hundreds of children over the next five years.

“Home-Start South East Dorset plays an important role in helping families, many of which are disadvantaged and living in areas of high deprivation. By providing home visiting volunteer support to struggling parents and their children our Positive Life Changes Project will enable families to reach their full potential.”

And Somerset Rural Youth Project will use a grant of £239,467 to support rurally isolated young people. The project aims to get young people involved in physical activities to improve their health and wellbeing and to raise their aspirations. Monthly taster sessions will consist of sports and activities such as basketball, hockey, baseball, street-dance, rock-climbing and boxer-cise. Weekly group activities will then follow in selected activities with each young person working towards certain goals.

Mark Cotton, Big Lottery Fund Head of the South West region, said: “It certainly is a healthy month in terms of funding for the region today, with some £2m being invested in a range of fantastic projects that are going to make a real difference to the lives and wellbeing of people of all ages.”

For a full list of projects in the South West securing funding today, see table:

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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