Welsh youngsters ‘get the ball rolling’ for People’s Millions cash giveaway

Area:

Wales

Programme:

The Peoples Millions

Release date:

13 3 2007

Primary school children from Ysgol Gymraeg in Abersytwyth, rolled a giant eight-foot  Big Lottery Fund ball along the famous seafront, to announce that five awards of up to £80,000 each are ready to be won by community projects across Wales.

People across the region have until the 17 May 2007 to enter the competition. ITV Wales viewers will be able to vote on which local community projects they want to win the Lottery good cause funding, when the on-air contest hits TV screens in November.

Since the People’s Millions was launched in 2005, a total of £378,071 has been awarded to eight projects in Wales. There has yet to be a winner in mid-Wales, so youngsters in Aberystwyth today hope their community will be next.

Previous winners have been using their awards to make their local communities a better place to live. These include the creation of a children's sensory garden for the Plas Madoc housing estate in Wrexham and the construction of a professionally designed play park for infants and juniors in the village of Broadhaven in Pembrokeshire.

Looking forward to another year of the People’s Millions, Tom Davies, Big Lottery Fund Wales Committee Member, said: “The People’s Millions is even bigger and better this year, with another fantastic opportunity for the Welsh public to have a big say where lottery money goes. This is a real chance to make a difference and it is great news for communities across Wales. If your community needs £80,000 to fund a project that will help the local environment, involve local people and help those facing hardship, then the message is simple- get your application in!”

Elis Owen, Managing Director and Controller of Programmes for ITV Wales, said: “ITV Wales is looking forward to playing a key role in ensuring that community lottery funding in Wales reaches the most deserving projects. We have had a huge response to People’s Millions over the last two years as viewers vote for their favourite projects on “Wales Tonight” and I hope this year’s contest will yet again inspire ITV Wales viewers to get involved in innovative projects to benefit their communities.”

Application packs for People’s Millions are available by calling our hotline on 08450 10 11 12 or by visiting www.peoplesmillions.org.uk The deadline for applications is noon, Thursday 17 May 2007.

Further information

Big Lottery Fund Press Office, Oswyn Hughes: 02920 678 207
Out of Hours contact: 07760 171 431
ITV Wales Press Contact: Sally Holmes on: 02920 590 746
Full details of Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available at: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk

Notes to Editors

ITV broadcast regions in the People’s Millions:

ITV Anglia (East), ITV Anglia (West), ITV Border, ITV Central (East), ITV Central (West), ITV Granada, ITV London, ITV Meridian (South), ITV Meridian (South East), ITV Thames Valley, ITV Tyne Tees, ITV Wales, ITV West, ITV West Country, ITV Yorkshire, stv Central, stv North and UTV.

90 awards are up for grabs – 4 plus one bonus award in each of 18 ITV regions.

Key People’s Millions dates for forward planning diaries:

• 17 May: Closing date for applications
• 31 October: Final project shortlist announced to the media
• 26 - 30 November: People's Millions competition televised on ITV.

• Since the launch of People’s Millions in 2005, the aim of the contest has been to fund projects that improve the quality of life of local communities through transforming the local environment. This year projects that provide opportunities or facilities for enjoying the local environment have also been added to the funding criteria.
• The Big Lottery Fund rolls out close to £2 million in Lottery good cause money every 24 hours, which together with other Lottery distributors means that across the UK most people are within a few miles of a Lottery-funded project.
• Telephone voting numbers – As with previous years, ITV and the Big Lottery Fund will use a low cost non-premium rate telephone number. ITV and Big do not make a profit from the voting telephone numbers.
• 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. On 1 December 2006 the Big Lottery Fund was officially established by Parliament and at the same time assumed the residual responsibilities of the dissolved National Lottery Charities Board (Community Fund) the New Opportunities Fund, and the Millennium Commission. The Fund is building on the experience and best practice of the merged bodies to simplify funding in those areas where they overlap and to ensure Lottery funding provides the best possible value for money.

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