Lottery funding

Townscape Heritage Initiative
The Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI), administered by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), aims to actively promote projects focused on the repair and regeneration of the historic environment in towns and cities throughout the UK. This initiative intends to support partnerships of organisations and enable them to make possible the continued use of buildings that make up the special architectural character of historic urban areas.

Projects must help people to learn about their own and other people’s heritage and also: conserve the UK’s diverse heritage for present and future generations to experience and enjoy; help more people, and a wider range of people, to take an active part in and make decisions about heritage. The deadline for applications is 30 November 2011.
(Source: Grantfinder Weekly Update, 14/9/11)

Sustainable Steps programme
The Sustainable Steps programme opens on Friday 30 September 2011. The programme aims to:

Support communities across Wales to reduce carbon emissions and adapt to climate change by developing skills, changing behaviour and promoting wider sustainable development.

The Big Lottery Fund are looking to fund a single Wales wide project to help develop the capacity and capability of communities across Wales, to take action on climate change. £620,000 is available over 2 years to fund the project. Further information can be found on the website www.biglotteryfund.org.uk from 30 September 2011.

The successful project is likely to be a partnership that will engage with communities that have previously taken little or no action to address the causes and consequences of climate change. It will support these communities by providing a wide range of initial advice, training and mentoring support.

The deadline for completed outline proposal forms is 12 noon, Friday 4 November 2011. If you are interested in applying they are holding two briefing and networking events:

Swansea Environment Centre, Monday 3 October 11am – 1pm
Wrexham County Borough Council Guildhall, Wednesday 5 October 2 – 4pm

To book your place, please email sustainablesteps@biglotteryfund.org.uk by Wednesday 28 September.

The National Lottery Act (2006) allows us to handle non-lottery as well as Lottery funding. We do this by operating as BIG Fund. The Sustainable Steps programme is funded by non-Lottery money that has been dormant in bank and building society bank accounts across the UK for 15 years or more. How we spend this money in Wales has been determined by Policy Directions issued to the Big Lottery Fund by Welsh Government. This programme has been developed to meet those Directions.

Big Lottery Fund Realising Ambition Programme
Voluntary and community sector organisations throughout the UK may apply for grants of up to £3 million to support projects that help young people between the ages of 8 and 14 years avoid pathways into offending. Funding is available for between three and five years and will be offered with a package of tailored specialist support and technical assistance. Realising Ambition is a £25 million programme with the aim of building the UK evidence base of what interventions work in helping young people avoid pathways into offending. The programme intends to support approximately 20 applications from across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. A consortium led by Catch22 has been appointed by the Big Lottery Fund to identify the best projects. Interested organisations should complete an online application form which is available on the Catch22 website. Expressions of interest are due by 9am on 10 October 2011.
(Source: Grantfinder Newsflash, 13/9/11)

Big Lottery Fund announces Millennium Now Fund
The Big Lottery Fund (BIG) has revealed it is to launch an £11 million programme to invest in five projects to be chosen by the public. The announcement was made by BIG’s Chief Executive, Peter Wanless, as part of a report reviewing the economic and social impact of initiatives funded by the Millennium Commission. For more information, interested parties are directed to the Millennium Now website.
(Source: Grantfinder newsflash, 13/5/11)

Larger Community Chest grants
The maximum grant available for sports projects through the Community Chest scheme has been increased from £1,000 to £1,500. This National Lottery scheme is run locally by all local authorities, and is designed to encourage more people to be more active, more often. Community Chest funding can benefit clubs and organisations in a variety of ways, from buying new equipment to funding coaching qualifications and sports clubs and organisations. For an application pack, please visit the Sport Wales web site.
(Source: WSA e-newsletter, April 2011)

Improving Futures
The Big Lottery Fund has launched a new scheme, Improving Futures. The scheme will fund up to 20 voluntary and public sector partnerships with grants of up to £900,000 to offer targeted support to families with children aged five to ten years old. Applications are welcomed from UK-based partnerships between voluntary and public sector organisations and must be led by voluntary organisations. Partnerships must be locally based and can address needs including housing, health and employment. With this new funding, the Big Lottery Fund wishes to make a difference for the children, families and communities supported through the programme.

Big Lottery Fund: International Communities
The Big Lottery Fund has launched a new international funding programme called International Communities. Due to run until 2015, the budget for the period 2010-12 will be up to £26 million. Grants of between £50,000 and £500,000 will be available to UK-based NGOs and voluntary organisations that are working with overseas partners to tackle the causes of poverty and deprivation and bring about a long-term difference in the lives of the most disadvantaged people.

The programme will support UK-based voluntary organisations and NGOs working in partnership with organisations in Africa, Asia (including the Pacific and Central Asian countries), the Middle East, Central and South America, the Caribbean and/or parts of Eastern Europe and the Balkans.

Heritage Lottery Fund - Young Roots
Providing grants of between £3,000 and £25,000, the Young Roots Programme aims to involve 13-25 year-olds in finding out about their heritage, developing skills, building confidence and promoting community involvement. Projects must create either opportunities for young people to volunteer in heritage, or new opportunities for young people to gain heritage-related skills. Further details are available from here.