- Area:
- Scotland
- Programme:
- Investing In Communities
- Release date:
- 10 4 2013
The Big Lottery Fund Scotland (BIG) today (10 APR) announces its latest package of funding worth over £8 million to 15 projects across Scotland.
The Isle of Rum and Isle of Whithorn both share a total of £1,619,998 from BIG’s Investing in Communities funding programme.
Announcing the awards, Big Lottery Fund Scotland Chair, Maureen McGinn, said: “The Investing in Communities programme helps bring real improvements to communities and people most in need. Rum and Whithorn are beautiful parts of Scotland with great tourist potential so upgrading accommodation and local facilities will enhance visitor experiences. Thanks to today’s funding, these two projects will make significant steps in securing the local economic future of their communities. They are excellent examples of initiatives which make positive difference to people’s lives.”
The Isle of Rum is a jewel in Scotland’s Inner Hebrides with wildlife, walks, hills, beaches and stunning scenery. The Isle of Rum Community Trust will use their award of £679,776 from Growing Community Assets fund to build a new community-owned bunkhouse facility which will offer visitor accommodation and create local job opportunities. The current bunkhouse is closed due to structural problems so the new accommodation will provide necessary facilities for a local economy dependent on tourism. Income generated by the bunkhouse will be invested in other development projects of the organisation. The community bunkhouse project will benefit the residents of the Isle of Rum (adult population 31) as part of a broader initiative by IRCT to promote the regeneration and sustainable development of the remote, island community.
Vikki Trelfer, Trust Development Officer, says: “This is a really exciting project for us. It’s the first big capital project we’ve taken on since the community took ownership of the village in 2010. The money from Big Lottery Fund Scotland will enable us to secure jobs, provide continued accommodation for visitors, and will ensure that more tourism revenue remains within the community, supporting future development projects. We’re very pleased.”
The Isle of Whithorn lies on the southernmost tip of Dumfries and Galloway. At one time it was actually an island, connected to the mainland by a causeway. Over time, houses and other buildings were built along it and its attractive harbour area was formed. Isles Future is a community regeneration charity who will use today’s Growing Community Asset’s grant of £940,222 to develop St Ninian’s Hall. A new annexe will double the floor space and provide a tearoom, village shop, post office, public toilets and storage. The St Ninian’s Hall Development Project will create jobs and provide training and work experience for young people, increased opportunities for volunteering and, for those who feel isolated, offer a welcoming environment to meet in. For Whithorn’s thousands of tourists who visit every year, the new facilities will enhance their experience and contribute to the area’s economic regeneration.
Ian Duncanson, Chair of Isle Futures, said: “The Big Lottery Fund grant will benefit the whole community, but particular older and younger residents who are at risk of isolation in this beautiful, but remote and sparsely populated area. The development of new facilities, complementing the existing village hall i.e. café/ tearoom, retail space, and exhibition area will provide a safe and welcoming focus and new opportunities for the whole community and create much-needed employment opportunities, as well as providing services for visitors, supporting the tourist industry – one of the most important businesses in the community and region.”
Other groups receiving funding today:
Ex-Services Mental Welfare Society (trading as Combat Stress) - £628,780
The Expansion of Outreach provision in Scotland to include alcohol/substance misuse aims to support veterans across Scotland who are experiencing alcohol and/or substance misuse issues due to underlying mental ill health issues caused by their experience of active service.
Volunteer Centre Aberdeenshire - £326,348
Skills for Volunteers to Overcome Barriers seek to support people who are disengaged from the job market and will focus on those who are economically inactive.
Argyll, Lomond and the Islands Energy Agency - £780,782
The five year Affordable Warmth for Sustainable Rural Communities on Argyll project will provide intensive support to 1500 elderly people and single parent families to enable them to move out of fuel poverty.
Claverhouse Training - £543,490
SMART Lone Parent Programme will provide long-term, one-to-one support to unemployed lone parents, helping them overcome the multiple barriers which they face to securing employment.
Parents of Autistic Spectrum Disorder Adults - £304,235
PASDA Interactive project will support carers of adults with autistic spectrum disorder, living in Edinburgh and the Lothians, to better cope with their caring role and connect with their peers, local services and resources.
The Terrence Higgins Trust - £792,587
Confident Families project aims to support families affected by HIV across central Scotland to reduce their exclusion and better cope with their situation. The project will target 17 local authorities with the highest prevalence of HIV and socio-economic deprivation.
Fife Council - Local & Community Services - £435,502
Fair Isle Primary School - Opportunities for All project works with vulnerable families in Templehall, Fife to improve confidence and skills, increase resilience and improve relationships. The project will work with families facing multiple challenges, including substance misuse, kinship carers, bereavement, mental health issues and parenting support.
Jobs and Business Glasgow - £519,880
Personal Best - Achieving Ambitions project, in partnership with Glasgow City Council, Jobcentre Plus and John Wheatley College aims to utilise the opportunities for volunteering, training and employment arising from staging major sporting and arts events in Glasgow.
The Haven Caring Counselling Communication Centre - £378,516
The Haven: Caring Connections will support the work of The Haven Centre in Blantyre to care for families affected by a long term illness such as cancer, Multiple Sclerosis and Motor Neurone Disease.
The Star Project - £286,425
Family Matters programme will work with families in the north end of Paisley who are facing poverty and disadvantage and who are struggling to cope with complex and difficult personal circumstances.
Aberlour Child Care Trust - £391,610
Aberlour Family Support Service will provide intensive support to families at risk where one or both parents have an identified learning disability. The project will improve parenting capacity and basic life skills in order to provide a safe and nurturing home environment for children aged from pre-birth up to 12.
Clydesdale Community Initiatives - £915,256
Clydesdale Community Workshops project will create a new enterprise and training hub and expand the organisation’s existing social enterprise. Over four years the project will create new sustainable jobs in social enterprise, and offer vulnerable young people and economically inactive adults with mental ill health or learning disabilities from South Lanarkshire training and work placements.
Up-2-Us - £360,000
The Up-2-Us 'Time for Change' project will work with girls aged 15 to 20 with a background of offending who are at highest risk of repeating damaging behaviour. Girls will be engaged through referral from Cornton Vale Young Offenders Institute, secure units or social workers.
Frances Chisholm, Press Team Scotland: 0141 242 1458
Public Enquiries Line: 0300 123 7110
Text phone: 0845 6021 659
Full details of the Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available on the website:
www.biglotteryfund.org.uk
• 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. 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 £25 billion over £28 billion has now been raised and more than 383,000 grants awarded across arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.
• The Scotland Committee has been making Big Lottery Fund decisions on Scottish projects since March 2007. As well as taking devolved decisions on Lottery spending, the Committee, led by Chair, Maureen McGinn, has and will continue to play a strategic role in the future direction of BIG in Scotland.
• The Big Lottery Fund is investing in Scotland’s communities through its Investing in Communities portfolio, as well as the small grants schemes Awards for All, Investing in Ideas, Communities and Families and 2014 Communities.
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