- Area:
- Scotland
- Programme:
- Investing In Communities
- Release date:
- 23 2 2012
Isolated older people in Dumfries and Galloway will soon be forming new friendships and enjoying a range of healthy, educational and fun activities, thanks to a grant of £241,294 from the Big Lottery Fund, announced today (Thursday 23 February).
The Glenkens Community and Arts Trust Ltd (GCAT) receives the award for its Connecting in Retirement project which will work within the nine communities that make up the Glenkens to support older people to sustain their independence at home, improve their well being and enjoy new activities in their community.
The project is amongst nine in Scotland today sharing in £4,178,298 from the Big Lottery Fund. Announcing the grants Big Lottery Fund Scotland Director, Jackie Killeen, said: “This funding will bring together isolated older people in the Glenkens who might not otherwise have had the opportunity to get out and about and meet new people. We all know that older people have a wealth of expertise and skills to share and I am delighted that this project will enable them to do just that while providing fun activities that will help them keep healthy and happy.”
Over the next four years the project will provide activities and transport for over 600 older people at The CatStrand, a performance and meeting space in the heart of the Glenkens community. Activities will include health and fitness classes, art clubs and intergenerational oral history projects, as well as an outreach IT training programme in the homes of those who are less mobile.
GCAT Chairman, Cathy Agnew, said: “This award is a tremendous boost for the Glenkensand indeed for the whole region. We are proud that the Big Lottery Fund continues to recognise and invest in the very real contribution that the various CatStrand programmes of events and activities make to the quality of life of so many people. This particular project will focus on older members of our community and will encourage them to feel more connected and less isolated in retirement.’
Further Information
For more details contact the Big Lottery Fund Press Scotland Office
0141 242 1458 or 07789 033457
BIG advice line: 0300 123 7110 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
- 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. BIG 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.
- The Scotland Committee, led by Chair Maureen McGinn, has been making Big Lottery Fund decisions on Scottish projects since March 2007. As well as taking devolved decisions on Lottery spending, the Committee 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 and 2014 Communities.
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