- Area:
- Wales
- Programme:
- Young People's Fund Make it Happen
- Release date:
- 5 11 2007
Welsh youngsters will have a chance to learn about the rich diversity of other world cultures, and disabled youngsters will be able to participate in a wide range of activities, thanks to a cash injection from the Big Lottery Fund.
Five projects developed by young people themselves share in a total of £22,032 awarded through the Make it Happen strand of the Young People’s Fund. Make it Happen helps Welsh young people aged 10–19 years old make positive changes to their lives.
The money will help provide activities for youngsters from a range of different backgrounds. The projects aim to enable youngsters to experience other cultures, develop their skills, express themselves in new and creative ways and provide opportunities that many would otherwise be unable to enjoy.
We live in a multicultural society and it’s an age where increasing our understanding of other cultures around the world is more important than ever before. That’s why youngsters from Monmouthshire and Swansea have decided to immerse themselves in learning about other traditions and values from around the world.
With the £4,715 they received, youngsters associated with the Charter Housing Association Limited in Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, have organised for a group from Zimbabwe to provide them with a series of workshops through the medium of drama, art, music and dance. The aim is to help them develop a wider understanding about different cultures and the project will culminate in a special celebratory performance, in which the youngsters will take part.
Meanwhile, youngsters from the Hafod Youth Action Group in Swansea will experience a true taste of the Orient thanks to their award of £3,125. The project will enable them to learn the Chinese Mandarin language and culture, and they will even visit Chinatown in London. In addition, the young people will also be taught how to DJ and record their own work and will visit a DJ music-mixing gig.
Young people with disabilities also benefit from the latest cash awards. With the £5,000 they received, Flintshire County Council will integrate two different groups of young people in Hawarden in a project which will create a sensory garden for children with disabilities to enjoy. In a project encompassing the counties of Neath Port Talbot and Swansea, the Local Aid for Children and Community Special Needs organisation will engage young people with special needs in series of events and activities that will help them share their experiences, build friendships, gain an insight into each others' difficulties and share coping strategies.
Youngsters in Llantwit Fardre, Pontypridd, will find out how technology and art go hand in hand, thanks to their award of £4,230. The Cynllun Pobl Ifainc Llantwit Fardre Young Peoples Project will use the grant to fund a combined music and animation project. The aim is to teach young people how to use I.T to make their creative ideas into an animated format.
Highlighting the importance of the Make it Happen programme, the Big Lottery Fund Wales Committee member and Chair of the Young People’s Fund Committee, Mike Theodoulou, said: “The projects will provide youngsters with an opportunity to learn valuable new lessons, be creative, develop new and exciting skills and express themselves in a safe environment. This is a prime example of how small amounts of money can make a big difference, by helping groups to develop a range of skills and take part in a variety of activities.”
For further information about the projects, and contact details for the groups and organisations involved, please contact the Big Lottery Fund Wales press office by email or on the numbers below.
For further information about the Big Lottery Fund and how your group can apply for funding, log onto the Big Lottery Fund website at www.biglotteryfund.org.uk and use the ‘Wales’ specific search facility. Alternatively, you can telephone the Big Lottery Fund office on 01686 611 700.
Further information
Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 02920 678 207
Out of hours contact: 07760171431
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 at 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 280,000 grants given out across the arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.
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