WIREDGOV

Free swimming classes for four and five year olds, more outdoor play opportunities for nursery children and a programme of healthy cooking workshops for new mothers are just some of the projects today sharing in £171,731 from the Communities and Families fund.

A joint venture between the Big Lottery Fund and the Scottish Government, the Communities and Families fund supports local projects that help families and communities give children the best start in life.

Children from Springburn will gain confidence in the water, thanks to a project from North Glasgow Housing Association. The group receives £10,000 to provide 250 children aged 4 and 5 with free swimming classes. It will be run in partnership with Scottish Swimming and local nursery schools.

Families in the east end of Glasgow will benefit from a programme of healthy cooking workshops as East End Kids & Co (Glasgow) celebrates an award of £7,383. The project will target young mothers of children under three years old to help them gain confidence in the kitchen. The group will provide two hour workshops to accommodate eight mothers at a time.

In Aberdeen the Maud Playgroup & Rising 5s will develop a garden for outdoor play with an award of £10,000. The garden will be situated in the grounds of the local village hall and will be used for a range of play and learning activities in line with the Curriculum for Excellence.

Also enjoying the outdoors will be children on the Isle of Rum. Thanks to a grant of £9,534, the Isle of Rum Community Trust will refurbish an existing play park to provide an area suitable for children under eight years old. Situated in the heart of the village next to the community hall, the park will also provide an area for families to relax and socialise.

Announcing the awards Maureen McGinn, Chair of the Big Lottery Fund Scotland Committee, said: “Today’s funding will support a range of grassroots projects aimed at improving the quality of life of children under eight years old. Whether through providing greater access to early learning or play, or by offering additional support for first time parents, this investment should give thousands of children from across Scotland the best start in life. Applications are welcome from projects which benefit children or families in Scotland, so I encourage people to call us, or visit our website, to find out more.”

Aileen Campbell, Minister for Children and Young People, said: “The Scottish Government wants Scotland to be the best place in the world for children to grow up and a key part of achieving that involves helping families and communities to flourish.
 
“This joint venture with the Big Lottery Fund will help make that happen by allowing communities to bid for funding to deliver the kind of projects they need to improve the lives of local children and families. It’s good to see once more, the great success of the project with these latest announcements.”  

The Communities and Families Fund will run over the next three years with £4.5 million from The Scottish Government and £1.5 million from the Big Lottery Fund.  Groups can apply for funding from £250 to £10,000. To find out more about the scheme and how to apply phone 0300 123 7110 or visit the Communities and Families Fund programme page.

A full list of all 21 projects which have been awarded funding today.

Further information

For more information regarding this release please contact:
Landa Rolland, Communications Manager
Big Lottery Fund Scotland
0141 242 1458/07823 552889 | landa.rolland@biglotteryfund.org.uk

For more information on Big Lottery Fund Scotland (including programmes and grants awards):
Visit the website: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/scotland
Ask BIG http://ask.biglotteryfund.org.uk/help/scotland
Or call BIG Advice Scotland: 0300 1237110

Notes to editors

• The Big Lottery Fund (BIG), 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.
• BIG 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.
• Since the National Lottery began in 1994, 28p from every pound spent by the public has gone to good causes. As a result, over £30 billion has now been raised and more than 400,000 grants awarded across arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.
• The Early Years Taskforce was set up in November 2011 to provide strategic leadership for the Early Years Change Programme and co-ordinate policy across Government and the wider public sector to ensure that Early Years spending is prioritised by the whole public sector.
• Scottish Government funding will be drawn from the wider £270 million Early Years Change Fund, which includes a Scottish Government contribution of £50 million over the next four years.
• The Scotland Committee, led by Chair Maureen McGinn, has been making Big Lottery Fund decisions on Scottish projects since March 2007. As well as taking devolved decisions on Lottery spending, the Committee has and will continue to play a strategic role in the future direction of BIG in Scotland.
• The Big Lottery Fund is funding Scotland’s communities through the Investing in Communities portfolio as well as the small grants schemes Awards for All, 2014 Communities and the Communities and Families Fund.