- Area:
- Wales
- Programme:
- Young People's Fund Make it Happen
- Release date:
- 23 5 2008
Projects the length and breadth of Wales are joining the Big Lottery Fund in celebration, as the organisation smashes through the £100 million barrier of awarding funds towards the further development of activities for young people throughout the country.
Under the latest round of the Young People’s Fund Make it Happen programme, a dozen projects - developed by young people themselves - are sharing in a total of £47,193. The fund aims to help Welsh young people make positive changes to their lives.
These latest awards are the culmination of four years of funding from the Young People’s Fund and catapults the Big Lottery Fund (BIG) beyond the £100 million barrier of money awarded to programmes and projects tailor made for Welsh young people.
Whether it is £50 million to refurbish and build PE and sports facilities for schools and communities, £6 million for developing outreach and support services for disaffected and disengaged young people, or £20 million to promote healthier eating and exercise for children and families, BIG has always been very active in supporting young people in Wales.
Over the summer, the money from Make it Happen will help the twelve projects to provide activities for youngsters from a range of different backgrounds. The projects funded today aim to enable youngsters to develop their skills, express themselves in new and creative ways and provide opportunities that many would otherwise be unable to enjoy.
By establishing a weekly allotment project with the £4,905 they received, the Denbigh Youth Project in North Wales will bring excluded young people back into contact with their peers and give them a sense of belonging in their community. In Gwynedd, Cynllun Ieuenctid Pwllheli will spend their £4,599 on a project to provide information and support at a new drop in facility for young people, while the Bboy group in Newport, South Wales, will use their award to enable around 150 young people to take part in a weekend of street dance, hip-hop, DJ, MC and graffiti workshops at Islwyn Scout Parc. In Powys, mid- Wales, young farmers will literally be getting their skates on thanks to the £1,033 awarded to the Beulah Young Farmers Club in Beulah. The money will be spalshed on a project to provide adventurous activities for the youngsters, including an Outside Challenge Course Session and an ice skating trip.
By spending £4,992 on a residential activity weekend for 30 young people, Bonymaen Kids Play Initiative in Bonymaen, Swansea, will provide summer activities and workshops for older members of the group, which will encourage team building and confidence.
The end of the Young People’s Fund does not spell the end of funding for youngsters in Wales. As BIG develops its new programmes for the future, projects that support young people can still apply for between £500 and £5,000 under the Awards for All Wales programme, and between £5,001 and £1 million under the People and Places programme, the largest of all BIG’s programmes.
Reflecting on the impact of the Young People’s Fund and highlighting the importance of the Make it Happen projects, Big Lottery Fund Wales Committee Member and Chair of the Young People’s Fund Committee, Mike Theodoulou, said: “Over the years we have helped thousands of youngsters to realise their potential and make a positive contribution to their community. The projects funded today will provide young people with an opportunity to learn valuable new lessons, be creative, develop new and exciting skills and express themselves in a safe environment.”
He added: “This is not the end of an era. The door is still wide open and, as we develop new programmes for the future, projects that benefit young people can still apply for funding through our Awards for All Wales programme and the People and Places programme – the largest lottery programme ever to be launched in Wales.”
Download a full list of projects funded today (Word document)
- 30KB
For further information about the Big Lottery Fund and how your group can apply for funding, log onto the Big Lottery Fund website www.biglotteryfund.org.uk and use the ‘Wales’ specific search facility. Alternatively, you can telephone the Big Lottery Fund office on 01686 611 700.
Big Lottery Fund Press Office – Oswyn Hughes: 02920 678 207
Out of hours contact: 07760 171 431
Public Enquiries Line: 08454 102 030
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:
- In Wales, the Big Lottery Fund is rolling out close to £1 million a week in Lottery good cause money, which together with other Lottery distributors means that across Wales most people are within a few miles of a Lottery-funded project.
- The Big Lottery Fund, the largest of the National Lottery good cause distributors, has been rolling out grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK since its inception in June 2004. It was 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 £20 billion has now been raised and more than 250,000 grants given out across the arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.
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