Big Lottery changes

At least £100 million a year is to be invested across England by the BIG Lottery Fund in a new improved version of its flagship Reaching Communities programme for each of the next five years.

The new funding which will be introduced this spring comes with two distinct improvements.

First, applicants seeking smaller sums of money will enjoy a simpler application and assessment process.

Second, an improved decision making process will ensure that all applicants will learn at an early stage whether their project is in with a chance of receiving funding. For those invited to the second stage, the likelihood of success will be much higher, making work on completing a full application more worthwhile.

Also in the pipeline for later in the year is a third element, a dedicated capital stream offering funding within the familiar Reaching Communities application process to respond to the high, unmet demand for funding for community buildings.

More information at http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk

Last updated: Thu 11th Feb 2010