In this issue:
Funding programmes open to your constituents
You can use our Funding Finder to search for funding programmes that are available for your constituents, while our grants search will allow you to find projects that have been funded in your constituency.
See a list of funding programmes open to your constituents
BIG Lottery funding in the South East
The Big Lottery Fund has awarded grants totalling £23.6 million in the South East over the last financial year, benefitting over 1,000 projects and communities across the region. This includes 839 small grants through our Awards for All programme.
Celebrating the Jubilee
BIG has been helping communities across the South East celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.
Prior’s Court School near Newbury used their £59,997 Jubilee People’s Millions grant to convert a rundown farm area into a dedicated animal-assisted therapy unit and nature trail. All of the students at the school have autism and severe and complex learning difficulties. The new therapy unit has really helped to bring the students out of their shells and helped them to learn new vocational skills. The school will officially launch the project at a big community event to celebrate the Jubilee.
We have also made a series of smaller grants to help get local Jubilee celebrations underway, including:
•Aylesbury Old Town Residents Association will use its £3,145 grant to hold a Diamond Jubilee Big Lunch and street party.
•Ewell Court Residents in Surrey will hold a Jubilee celebration event for the whole community thanks to £4,000 of Lottery funding.
•Ash Green Scout Group in Kent will spend its £1,680 grant to buy new camping equipment so that its members can take part in the District Scout Queen’s Jubilee camping event.
Thanks to a BIG grant of £297,176 The Beat Project is working in partnership with the St. James Centre Trust to turn a disused old school into a thriving community centre for the people of East Malling and beyond.
With funding from other sources they have been offering a limited programme of activities for the community including lessons on music technology in their radio room. Now with their Reaching Communities grant they can expand their programme to offer a variety of courses, workshops and community events.
Angela Borsos, community development manager for the Beat Project, said: “The community centre sits in quite a disadvantaged part of the wider community. We are offering lots of opportunities here to develop new skills, through courses, volunteering or apprenticeships. We want to make our activities fun and easy for people to engage with. Our whole ethos is training to help people build their confidence and skills in addition to helping them into work or education.”
The project is already proving a success and you can hear what one of the young people benefiting from the project has to say about how the Beat Project has turned her life around.
Angela sums up the impact the projects is already making: “The most immediate difference you see in people is an improvement in their self worth. At the beginning a lot of people will often say things like “I can’t do that” or “I won’t achieve that.” But by building their self confidence through the activities that they engage with, we really do see them turnaround. They start to think: the world is open to me.”
How can we help you?
We can arrange constituency tours of projects we have funded and we encourage groups to invite their local MP to project openings. We can provide case studies from constituencies and leaflets or information for surgeries and your website. Where possible, we can organise or attend funding events in local areas and provide constituents with funding information. We will also send you a monthly mail out showing projects funded in your constituency.
Further Information
Contact: Kate Sawdy, Policy and Learning Manager
Telephone: 01483 462 903