East of England region update

Welcome to the March update from the Big Lottery Fund in the East of England.

In this edition there is information about future funding for young people, an update on Ecominds, part of the Changing Spaces programme, and details of funding for veterans and new funding going to veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

Don’t forget to order your copy of our BIG magazine also available online now, download issue 3 of BIG magazine

If you need hard copies for distribution or to take to any events please e-mail

Regionevents.ea@biglotteryfund.org.uk

In our external news we feature information on from Play England, the Arts Council Enland and Participation Works.

I hope you find the update useful and informative. We always welcome your feedback.

Best wishes,

Sara Betsworth, Head of Region – East of England

The National Lottery Awards 2010

The annual search to find the UK’s favourite Lottery-funded projects

Has your project got what it takes to go all the way to the final, and feature on a special BBC1 show?

Now in their seventh year, the Awards showcase the achievements of Lottery-funded projects large and small, from all over the UK. It’s your chance to tell your story and celebrate the hard work, dedication and success of your Lottery-funded project. You can apply online and we have decided to extend the deadline for entries to the National Lottery Awards by one week, to Friday 19 February, as we wanted to give you the best possible chance to vote for your favourite project and get your entry in!

For further details, check out www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/awards

Future Funding for Young People

Future Funding for Young People

The Big Lottery Fund’s Strategic Framework for 2009-15, the result of our public consultation on future funding, gives prominence to the themes of transitions and isolation. BIG welcomes the results of the Young Foundation research which is already informing the development of its new programmes.

The Young Foundation's latest report 'Sinking and Swimming: understanding Britian's unmet needs' explores how psychological and material needs are being met and unmet in Britain. For further information please visit www.youngfoundation.org

This year in England, BIG will announce details of a targeted intervention to support young people moving through important and difficult transitions in their life, in particular it will provide a package of support for some of the most isolated young people in our communities, young carers as well as young people leaving the care system and young people leaving young offenders institutions.

BIG will be looking to support these vulnerable young people in developing their skills as well as improving their access to housing, employment, education and training. BIG will be committing at least £30 million for young people’s work in 2010.

Ecominds

Owing to the large number of applications received to date, the closing date for Small Grants has been brought forward to 12 noon, Friday 30 April 2010. Please be aware that no late applications will be considered. The amount of funding currently available for Small Grants is limited and prospective applicants are encouraged to consider carefully before applying. Find out more on the Ecominds website.

Heroes Return 2 and Young Veterans

The Heroes Return 2 programme provides Lottery funding to help World War II veterans that saw active service and are resident in the UK or the Republic of Ireland to take part in commemorative visits to mark the anniversary of events that led to the end of WWII.

Awards totaling £588,860 have been made to 334 veterans from across the region. Along with their partners/carers, veterans will be making commemorative visits to countries across the world, including trips to France, America and Holland. Heroes Return 2 is open to applications until 31 January 2011.

Find out more about the Heroes Return 2 programme.

TheBig Lottery Fund plans to announcea multi-million-pound funding programme to promote the psychological wellbeing and successful transition of veterans and their families into civilian life. Details of the scheme are currently in development and will be announced in the next few months.

This follows the Mental Health Foundation’s findings that young soldiers returning from Afghanistan are up to three times more likely to kill themselves than civilians of the same age. BIG has been consulting withService and ex-Service bodies to help focus the scheme where it can best meet unmet need and discussions have been very positive.

Peter Wanless, Chief Executive, said: “The after-effects of armed service on people’s lives don’t always present themselves obviously or immediately. We want to understand, support and champion organisations that can improve things for our servicemen and women as they move back into civilian life.”

Free tools for measuring soft outcomes

The Research & Learning team at BIG recently awarded some small contracts to help organisations develop their tried-and-tested tools for measuring soft outcomes. The tools will be freely available and we hope that they will help projects to measure the changes they are seeking to make.

The first two are now complete:

• The new online home for the Outcomes Star: www.outcomesstar.org.uk

• Updated and online version of the Prove It! Toolkit: www.proveit.org.uk

External News

Play England

The January edition of ‘Play in the East of England’is now available to download from the Play England website:

www.playengland.org.uk

Please see the 'Resources' section for details of the ‘O2 It's Your Community Awards’ and ‘Spaceshaper’ facilitator training.

Arts Council England - consultation on future priorities for the arts

This consultation sets out the Arts Council England’s understanding of the current landscape, celebrates the success of the arts and identifies areas for development over the next ten years.

They are asking for your thoughts on the way forward. Your views will inform the long term strategic framework and the next set of investment decisions.

To take part in the consultation please visit www.artscouncil.org.uk/consultation

The consultation will close on 14 April 2010.

Participation Works

Hear by Right Local Learning Group will provide you with an opportunity to focus further on the Hear by Right standards and help you identify, prioritise and develop the areas that are key for your organisation.

3 March 2010 - Stevenage

To book your place or find out more about the courses visit: www.participationworks.org.uk or call the Enquiry Line: 0845 603 6725

Media Trust

Does your community feel unheard? You could have a voice using digital media!

MediaTrust will personally help you understand what digital media is all about and how you get can help, with access to funding, free top tips, practical guides, digital mentors, training and support on getting your voice heard. Apply now - applications for grants open until 28 February 2010. To find out more more contact 0207 217 3751 or visit www.mediatrust.org/community voices