26 March 1998

National Lottery Charities Board invests £27.5 million to house the homeless

The National Lottery Charities Board today announced that it has provided over £27.5 million to charities dedicated to tackling homelessness and its effects throughout England.

These grants are part of the National Lottery Charities Board’s fifth awards programme under the themes of Improving people's living environment and Voluntary sector development. A total of £100 million has been awarded to 1002 charities and community groups in England.

Two hundred and twelve grants, 21 per cent of the total, have been awarded to projects which help people of all ages to retain their existing home, and to provide access to new homes for those who are already homeless.

Janet Paraskeva, National Lottery Charities Board Director for England, commented: ‘Homelessness affects many people in our society. Once you lose your home, it is extremely hard to put your life back together again. Everyone needs a place they can call home. We are delighted to be able to make fund these organisations which are doing so much to help people to help themselves.’

Stella Clarke, Chair of the England grant making committee, welcomed the grants: ‘This is good news for the voluntary sector and for thousands of people and communities in England. I am delighted that we have been able to award grants to so many excellent projects and I am particularly pleased that we have again made many grants which will improve the quality of life in local communities.’

The first £1 million-plus grant made by the National Lottery Charities Board for work in the UK goes to Shelter to establish the Homeless to Homes Programme in Birmingham, Sheffield and Bristol, helping previously homeless families make the transition to permanent accommodation.

Centrepoint Soho receives a grant of £487,500 to aid the expansion of Centrepoint, a national agency for the homeless. The money will be used to establish permanent offices in Leeds and Oxford to expand the work across England.

The Big Step, a group which has developed from the Big Issue, has been awarded £193,502 to help homeless vendors in the north of England to move on from selling the magazine and out of homelessness permanently.

Empty Homes Agency is to use its £194,000 award to set up local groups in 40 areas to implement Community Empty Property Action Plans, bringing empty buildings back into use for those in need. The project will target deprived areas where there is a significant level of empty properties and aims to house three thousand people over two years.

To interview grant recipients or to speak to Janet Paraskeva or Stella Clarke, telephone the press office on 0171 747 5200.