Lotto help is lifeline as staff return to workplace

HERITAGE GROUP WELCOMES FUNDING

EXPERIENCE Community CIC has received £22,500 from The National Lottery Heritage to help cover core costs of the organisation.

The funding will enable staff to return to work after a short period of being furloughed, so that they can continue to help disabled people access the natural heritage many of us take for granted.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown began, Experience Community CIC has been working hard to establish how disabled people can safely get back out into our countryside.

Many disabled people have been self-isolating during lockdown and it’s much more difficult for them to get out for their daily exercise as many other people have been doing.

Craig Grimes, Managing Director at Experience Community CIC, said: “Thanks to the National Lottery and its players, we can now look at how we can start safely running our activities again so that disabled people can get vital exercise in the outdoors, which is crucial for physical and mental health wellbeing.

“We’re grateful that The National Lottery Heritage Fund is supporting us at this crucial time – it’s a lifeline to us and others who are passionate about sustaining heritage for the benefit of all.”

The funding, made possible by National Lottery players, was awarded through The National Lottery Heritage Fund’s Heritage Emergency Fund.

£50million has been made available to provide emergency funding for those most in need across the heritage sector.

The UK-wide fund will address both immediate emergency actions and help organisations to start thinking about recovery.

Ros Kerslake, Chief Executive of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “Heritage has an essential role to play in making communities better places to live, supporting economic regeneration and benefiting our personal wellbeing.

“All of these things are going to be even more important as we emerge from this current crisis.

“Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, we are pleased to be able to lend our support to organisations such as Experience Community CIC during this uncertain time.”

Like Experience Community CIC, other charities and organisations across the UK that have been affected by the impact of the coronavirus outbreak are being given access to a comprehensive package of support of up to £600 million of repurposed money from The National Lottery.

This money is supporting some of the most vulnerable people in our communities, and, thanks to National Lottery players, £30 million is raised every week for good causes, including heritage of local and national importance.

By playing The National Lottery, people up and down the country are making a contribution to the nationwide response to the impact of COVID-19 on local communities across the UK.

The National Lottery Heritage Fund is currently open to applications for its Heritage Emergency Fund.

To find out more visit: https://www. heritagefund.org.uk/responding- coronavirus-covid-19

To find out more about the National Lottery Good Causes , visit www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/coronaviruspandemic-response