Lottery’s Big Lunch returns to Ballyclare

The event, which takes place in towns and villages across Northern Ireland, is “the UK’s get-together for neighbours,” with free lottery-funded packs available now to local residents, groups and schools.

Ballyclare woman Pamela Davis organised last year’s Big Lunch in conjunction with Grow with Grange in the Grange Estate.

She is now planning this year’s Big Lunch with the Hands on Nature wild flower project, through the Big Lottery’s Grow Wild scheme.

She said: “Grow Wild is an idea from Kew Gardens and The Big Lunch was started by the Eden project-both awards are funded by Big Lottery to enable more sharing and growing in Northern Ireland, so we are delighted to be able to work with them.

“Since The Big Lunch is all about getting to know your neighbours better, we are planning to host a Big Lunch at the allotment and we hope to encourage more of the residents to plan their own Big Lunches to help embed this simple but brilliant idea here in Ballyclare.”

Last year 4.83 million people took part in Big Lunches, with 97 per cent saying they would recommend The Big Lunch to friends.