WIREDGOV

The Big Lottery Fund announced today, during Big Energy Saving Week, its new funding programme, Our Environment Our Future. This UK-wide £30 million investment is set to support projects enabling young people (aged 11-24) to improve their local environment and increase their employability through learning new skills.

The Big Lottery Fund is now seeking a UK-wide strategic partner to coordinate this new funding programme which opens to applications next year.

Our Environment Our Future will see the Big Lottery Fund bring together, for the first time, two core areas of its investment - environment and young people. One of the key objectives of the programme will be to support projects that enable young people across the UK to participate and take the lead in the growing green economy.

Peter Ainsworth, UK Chair of the Big Lottery Fund, said: ‘The environment is where we all live and the only place we have. In tough economic times it's important to remember that the economy is just a part of the environment. Young people need and want to shape the spaces and places they will inherit. This initiative is designed to help them do just that, and to give them the skills which are needed to forge green and lasting prosperity.’

He continued: ‘Since 2006 the Big Lottery Fund has invested around £350 million in a range of environmental initiatives across the UK. On top of this, many more projects benefiting the environment have been funded through our small and medium-sized grant programmes. This is a great opportunity for an experienced organisation to work with us to build on this success and coordinate this unique new funding programme.’                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            The deadline is the 16 May 2014 for organisations to apply for the role of UK-wide strategic partner. This is the first part of a two stage process. Further details are available here: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/ourenvironment

Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 020 7211 1888
Out of hours media contact: 07867 500 572

If you have a hearing or speech impairment you can contact us using Text Relay at
18001 plus 0191 376 1776

Full details of the Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available on the website: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk
Ask us a question here: http://ask.biglotteryfund.org.uk
Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/BigLotteryFund #BIGlf
Find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/BigLotteryFund

Notes to editors

• The fund’s pledge to investments benefiting the environment currently includes: Changing Spaces: around £200m, Parks for People: £254m (funded in partnership with Heritage Lottery Fund, Communities Living Sustainably: around £12m, Grow Wild: over £10m, Breathing Places: over £9m; Northern Ireland - Energy Efficient Venues: over £6.9m, Space and Place: £15m; Wales – Community Land Advisory Service: £600,000, Community Energy Development: £1m; Scotland - Growing Community Assets 1 (part of Investing in Communities) 2006-2009: £48 Million, Growing Community Assets 2  (part of Investing in Communities) 2010 -2015: £13 million – to date,  Community Spaces Scotland: £9m.
• The Big Lottery Fund, the largest distributor of National Lottery good cause funding, is responsible for giving out 40% of the money raised for good causes by the National Lottery.
• The Fund is committed to bringing real improvements to communities and the lives of people most in need and has been rolling out grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK. Since its inception in 2004 BIG has awarded close to £6bn.
• The Fund was formally established by Parliament on 1 December 2006.
• In the year ending 31 March 2013, 28% of total National Lottery revenue was returned to the Good Causes.
• Since the National Lottery began in 1994, £31 billion has been raised and more than 400,000 grants awarded across arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.