Southport projects hit the jackpot!

NEW figures show that more than ₤298,000 of National Lottery funding was invested within Southport, in 2017 alone. 7 National Lottery grants were awarded in Southport during last year; providing a vital boost to arts, sports and heritage projects alongside community groups helping those most in need.

A wide variety of local projects received National Lottery funding in 2017, including:-

► ₤9,400 to Ainsdale St Johns Church of England Primary School to develop an outdoor community area.

► ₤9,900 to Mobile Craft 4 U to run therapeutic craft workshops for people living with cancer.

► ₤243,000 to The Community Church in the North West of England to provide urgent structural repairs to the listed Southbank Street Church building.

From today, these examples, or any organisation that has ever received National Lottery funding, has the possibility of gaining nationwide acclaim by entering The National Lottery Awards 2018; the annual search for the UK's favourite Lottery funded projects.

National Lottery Awards winners' will receive a ₤5,000 cash prize and national recognition at a glittering ceremony broadcast on BBC 1 later in the year.

Strictly Come Dancing winner and TV Presenter, Ore Oduba, hosted the National Lottery Awards 2017 BBC 1 show. He said:- "Every week National Lottery players raise ₤30 million for good causes and that funding is invested in life changing projects around the UK. There are thousands of ordinary people doing extraordinary things with National Lottery funding within communities across the country. The National Lottery Awards are a rare opportunity to put the spotlight on those who truly deserve it. So if you know a Lottery project that's making a positive difference, now's the time to nominate."

Last year, UK wide running network, parkrun, won Best Sport Project for its National Lottery funded programme supporting visually impaired runners. Chris Jones from parkrun says it has had a really positive impact on the project:- "Since winning, we've seen an increase in numbers of people living with sight loss participating at parkrun. Perhaps more importantly, we've seen a transformation in self confidence for individuals who have found that they can achieve more than they ever thought possible."

Projects can be nominated for a National Lottery Award in 7 categories:- Arts, Education, Environment, Health, Heritage, Sport and Voluntary / Charity to reflect the breadth of funding that the National Lottery invests in.

To enter your favourite project in this year's National Lottery Awards, Tweet:- @LottoGoodCauses with your suggestions or call:- 0207 293 3329. Entries must be received by midnight on 6 April 2018.