BIG’s Awards for All programme will be the Fund’s biggest-ever commitment to a small grant scheme supporting community projects, offering a more easily accessible programme with even quicker decision times.
A total of £45 million is available in England offering Big Lottery Fund grants of between £300 to £10,000 to grassroots groups in the community and voluntary sector, health bodies, schools and parish or town councils.
In Wales grants of between £500 and £5,000 are available with a total of £2.4 million available.
The programme aims to make a difference to communities and the lives of those most in need and will focus on social and environmental projects that benefit local communities.
The new easy-to-use application form, available in English and Welsh, can be downloaded, filled in and emailed direct to the Big Lottery Fund as well as being available in hard copy.
Sir Clive Booth, Chair of the Big Lottery Fund, said:
“The Big Lottery Fund’s Awards for All programme will build on the features that made the previous scheme so popular. A simpler application process and a maximum turnaround time of six weeks for a decision are among the changes to the programme which will make it much easier for applicants to successfully apply for small pots of funding that can have such a big impact on local communities and lives.”
In addition to the changes in England and Wales, a new-look Awards for All Scotland is also launching today. Supported by the Big Lottery Fund, the Scottish Arts Council and sportscotland, the programme has £10.5 million to give away in grants ranging in size from £500 to £10,000. A new Awards for All scheme in Northern Ireland will launch later in April 2009 with a budget of £3.5 million a year.
