- Area:
- Northern Ireland
- Programme:
- Energy Efficient Venues
Activities for Young People Wales
- Release date:
- 3 10 2012
Northern Ireland’s largest outdoor pursuits centre will be able to save money during the recession and increase the activities it offers both disabled and non-disabled people thanks to a grant windfall from the Big Lottery Fund.
Share Discovery Village is one of 22 groups across Northern Ireland awarded grants totalling over £439,624 from the Big Lottery Fund’s Energy Efficient Venues programme. The programme, which is now closed for applications, offers Lottery cash to local groups to carry out improvements to their community venues so they make savings on their heating and lighting costs and cut down on their spending.
The outdoor pursuits centre, which is based on the banks of Upper Lough Erne and gives disabled and non-disabled people the chance to take part in a education and creative arts activities, has been awarded £46,738 to carry out a range of energy saving improvements. “We have 17 chalets and a farmhouse complex providing over 200 bed spaces. We welcome over 15,000 people each year and we are the largest outdoor pursuits centre in Ireland, offering activities including sailing, climbing, canoeing, drama and pottery,” said Chief Executive Robert Livingstone.
“We will be replacing the lighting in our swimming pool and external areas with energy efficient LED lighting. The centre’s insulation will also be upgraded and new solar electric panels will be installed which will feed into the grid supply. The money we save will go back into running the wide range of activities we offer that encourage people of all backgrounds and ages to mix together.”
“These measures will really improve our energy efficiency. Our energy costs were just crippling us. With these improvements we will save £8,500 a year on the electricity bills for our centre.”
Northern Ireland Rape Crisis Association, which offers counselling to adults whose lives have been affected by sexual abuse, is receiving £9,946 to carry out energy saving improvements to its Belfast offices. By making their venue more energy efficient they will save money on their heating and lighting bills that they can put back into the counselling and support services they provide.
“We work with very vulnerable people and it is important that we have a warm and inviting environment to bring them into,” said Regional manager Peter Lockhart. “We are going to replace the boiler and update the radiators in our centre with thermostatic controls. The building will also be insulated, existing lighting will be upgraded, and we’re going to carry out an energy audit to find out where to make more energy saving improvements in the future.
“The money we save by making the improvements will be deployed to front line services rather than going into heating costs. We would prefer to direct our income towards making services better for our clients – those people who need our support.”
CRAIC (Community Recreational Arts in Coalisland), a community arts group that runs drama and music activities and classes for people of all ages in Dungannon, has also been awarded £44,919 to carry out improvements to their centre including a new heating system and a porch to reduce heat loss.
“We run a vibrant busy centre that is open seven days a week,” said management committee member, Brian Duffin. “But we have always had difficulty controlling the temperature of the building. It was either too hot or too cold. Insulation is inadequate or non-existent, and everything, including the lighting, was originally installed by volunteers on a very limited budget.
“This is a great group and these improvements will help us save money which we will use to make things even better for everyone involved.”
Frank Hewitt, the Big Lottery Fund’s NI Chair said: “The Energy Efficient Venues programme supports community organisations to carry out energy efficiency improvements to their venues that help them make savings during this difficult period of recession, and have a positive effect on the environment.
“This has been a very popular programme and we have awarded grants to a range of organisations across Northern Ireland. Organisations should be aware that the programme is now closed for applications.”
The Energy Efficient Venues programme is closed for applications. To find about more about the programme visit www.biglotteryfund.org.uk
A full list of grants announced today
- 56KB
Further information
Andrew Kennedy Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 02890 551 426
Out of hours contact: 07788 640 791
Full details of the Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available on the website: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk
Notes to Editors
- The Big Lottery Fund (BIG), the largest distributor of National Lottery good cause funding, is responsible for giving out 46% 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. 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 £26 billion has now been raised and more than 330,000 grants awarded across arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.
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