Big Lottery Fund unveils programmes
Howard Lake | 10 January 2006 | News
Northern Ireland will benefit from a £90 million investment from the Big Lottery Fund over the next five years. The Big Lottery Fund has unveiled plans to develop new programmes with the launch of the Big Message, a document which gives details of how the money will be spent up until 2009.
A wide ranging consultation took place to find out how local communities wanted future grant programmes for the largest of the National Lottery good cause distributors to be developed.
The funding will be allocated under the headings of promoting community learning, promoting community safety and cohesion and promoting well being.
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Walter Rader, the Big Lottery Fund’s NI director, said: We are making good progress in developing our future funding programmes. Our consultation on how we should fund has been an overwhelming success, with hundreds of people letting us know what they want from our funding.
The messages coming across loud and clear are that people want our funding to be flexible and delivered in partnership, so that Northern Ireland people can achieve healthier lifestyles and improved green spaces through community led projects.”
Mr Rader said that up to 70% of the funding will go to the voluntary and community sector, a reference to the fact that some lottery funding now goes to other sectors.
The Big Message gives details on how future grant programmes will be developed in the following areas:
Reaching Communities Northern Ireland: This open grant programme will provide up to five-years funding for voluntary and community led projects to help people achieve their full potential, actively participate in communities, boost community ownership of better and safer environments and improve physical and mental health. It is anticipated that this programme will be open by Spring 2006.
Community learning and well-being: This programme will boost learning opportunities for older and younger people to learn together as well as supporting young people and families to learn together. It is likely that this programme will be open by next Autumn.
Healthier and Safer Communities : the Big Lottery Fund will work in partnership to develop a strategic programme to promote healthier and safer communities.
Refurbishment Programme: The Big Lottery Fund will also develop a one-off refurbishment programme to improve the quality and use of community venues across Northern Ireland. It is planned that this programme will also be open next Autumn.
The Big Lottery Fund will also invest in longer-term support for the voluntary and community sector in Northern Ireland by making lottery cash available over period of time to help the sector develop. Finally a Strategic Fund will be develop to allow the Big Lottery Fund to support specific projects in Northern Ireland between now and 2009.
The Big Message document is available on website www.biglotteryfund.org.uk
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.