Lottery strengthens foundations of Yorkshire communities

Area:

Yorkshire and the Humber

Programme:

Community Buildings

Release date:

30 3 2009

The BIG Lottery Fund is giving people in York more resources with which to build community cohesion. In the midst of the current bleak economic outlook, The Fund is today announcing two cash injections to build up the heart of the community.

The bricks and mortar investments, from BIG’s Community Buildings programme, benefit two local groups. Accessible Arts and Media Limited receives £247,037 for its ‘Melbourne Centre Development’ project, whilst Bishopthorpe Parish Council welcomes a £245,000 funding fillip to refurbish a 100-year-old village hall.

These are two of seven groups in Yorkshire and The Humber sharing in £2,160,674 from this round of awards. Projects in Barnsley, Bradford, Driffield, Leeds and Rotherham have also received welcome financial backing.

Caroline James, BIG Lottery Fund Head of Region for Yorkshire and The Humber, said: “At a time when the country faces one of the most difficult periods in decades, this funding from the Community Buildings programme will be critical in helping local communities lay foundations for future prosperity. Yorkshire and The Humber has done particularly well in this round of awards with no fewer than seven groups receiving vital support for their projects.”

Accessible Arts and Media Limited will refurbish York’s popular Melbourne Centre, a Victorian church hall that is no longer fit for the needs of the organisation. Improvements will include a new entrance, heating and lighting, and a restructuring of the building’s internal layout to create attractive, flexible spaces for adult education, arts and sports.

Rose Kent, General Manager of Accessible Arts and Media, said: "We’re delighted to have received this grant from the Big Lottery Fund which will enable us to create York's first purpose built, fully inclusive, community arts and media centre. This funding comes at an exciting time in our development as an organisation and will ensure that, through renovation, the Melbourne Centre will be a key resource accessed by all members of the local community.”

Bishopthorpe Parish Council also takes great heart from its £245,000 grant award. The wheels are now in motion on its ‘Bishopthorpe Village Hall - Into the Future' project, that will extend a building last renovated over fifty years ago by adding a new staircase and lift to the first floor, a kitchen, and additional toilets.

Improved heating and lighting will also be installed, and a new corridor will allow greater access to the various rooms. A homework club, youth badminton, and adult education classes will be offered to the local community.

Stewart Harrison, Chair, Bishopthorpe Parish Council, said: "This grant from the Big Lottery Fund will enable the Parish Council to extend, improve and update our well used but tired village hall. Modernisation of the whole building, including new energy efficient heating and lighting along with the installation of a lift, will introduce the hall to a whole new generation of users."

Also benefiting from funding in the region is Billingley Village Community Association in Barnsley, which has been awarded £248,738 to convert a disused barn into a village hall capable of hosting luncheon clubs, dance classes and a playgroup.

A similarly impressive programme of activities will also be offered at a carbon-neutral building in Baildon, West Yorkshire. Local residents, especially those living on the Ferniehurst Estate, will see the benefit of the £475,910 award made to Baildon Community Link, which will host debt advice sessions, adult education classes and a community café in a purpose-built community centre.

Elsewhere, Skipsea Village Hall has been successful in securing £275,000 to demolish a Second World War military building and replace it with a modern brick-built hall; Al Hassan Education Centre in Leeds aims to use its £374,263 to transform four derelict shops into a community centre; and Firbeck Village Hall welcomes £294,726 to fit a new kitchen, toilets, heating and insulation so that their building is fit to host dog training, yoga and line dancing.

Full list of today’s awards in Yorkshire and Humberside:

Further Information

Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 020 7211 1888
Out of hours contact: 07867 500 572
Public Enquiries Line: 08454 102030
Textphone: 0845 6021 659

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

Notes to Editors

• Community Buildings is dedicated to investing in buildings that give communities a chance to improve their quality of life and meet local needs, by offering a range of activities and services open to a broad range of people.
• Up to  £50 million is being distributed across England over three years with grants of £50,000 to £500,000 available.
• The programme opened for applications in June 2006. 200 applicants were invited to submit stage 2 applications and development funding was awarded to some projects.
• The programme is now closed for applications.
• The Big Lottery Fund (BIG), the largest distributor of National Lottery good cause funding, is responsible for giving out half 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. 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 £22 billion has now been raised and more than 300,500 grants awarded across arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.

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