More community groups awarded Lottery grants

The local beneficiaries are Arthritis Care (Banbridge branch), £8,050; St Mary’s Primary School, Banbridge, £9,800; Tullylish Gaelic Athletic Club, £8,300; and Tullylish Historical Society, £6,650.

Arthritis Care will use the grant to run a trip for members, while the school is using the money for a summer scheme for young people. The gaelic athletic club is using its share of the hand-out to carry out improvements to the venue and produce a commemorative booklet and DVD.

Meanwhile, the history group has planned to use the extra cash to record the history of Gilford’s linen industry, encourage local schools to get involved in history projects and also to support isolated older people in the district.

‘Awards for All’ offers community, voluntary and statutory groups the chance to apply for small grants of between £500 and £10,000 to finance projects destined to have a significant impact on local communities and the lives of people most in need.

Frank Hewitt, Big Lottery Fund NI Chair, commented, “The Big Lottery Fund’s NI ‘Awards for All’ programme funds health, education, environment and community projects that help people bring about positive change in their lives, improve health and well-being, develop skills and create safer communities.”

He continued, “The application process is simple and accessible, making it easy for applicants to successfully apply for small pots of funding which can have such a big impact on local communities and lives.”

Application forms and guidance notes are available to download at www.awardsforall.org.uk. For more details, call 028 9055 1455 or [email protected]