BIG lottery: Reaching Communities

The BIG lottery Reaching Communities programme recently changed their criteria for funding by opening a building stream of the programme:

http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/prog_reaching_communities?tab=3&regioncode=-uk

The programme will now fund new buildings or adaptation of existing properties that help address community needs. The funding for buildings began in mid December 2010 and currently has no end date. The application process involves an outline proposal of the works and a subsequent formal application. This means they can check whether the project fits in with their criteria before the applicant has spent a lot of time and effort.

The programme is targeted at the most deprived areas of the country and those areas the BIG lottery have not already funded. There is an eligibility checker on the website to put your post code in to check whether you are in an eligible area.

Successful projects will have to show that the buildings will help to address community needs in terms of outcomes. Outcomes are something that the lottery use to assess the difference that a project has made to people's quality of life. For example, helping older people live within their own homes by providing meals on wheels or lunch clubs might be an outcome.

The next question is why do you need to know all of this? If you have a church or buildings in an eligible area and you want to help the community, you might find that the BIG lottery will fund your project. If you are eligible for the scheme and you meet the BIG lottery's criteria you have a 1 in 3 chance of getting funding. If you need any advice, let me know.