6 June 2000

Charities Board gives support to new-born babies

The parents and families of new-born babies in intensive care will be offered one-to-one support as a result of a grant of £151,863 announced today by the UK Committee of the National Lottery Charities Board. Vulnerable babies were among a range of beneficiaries of the latest round of nationwide awards. People with high blood pressure, deaf children, people working from home and those living with mental illness will also benefit, and the public will now be able to seek advice and support on dental problems following a grant to set up a national dental helpline. The awards, totalling over £4 million to 15 major national charities for projects to be delivered in all four countries of the UK, were made under the Charities Board's Community involvement and Poverty and disadvantage programmes, which seek to help those at greatest disadvantage and improve the quality of life in the community:

BLISS - The National Charity for the Newborn - helps to save the lives of premature and sick newborn babies through family support and much needed neonatal equipment and nurse training. Last year 84,068 babies had to spend some time in a Special Care Baby Unit. The grant will enable BLISS to expand its work in supporting these most vulnerable babies and their families through its family support network which offers guidance and support during this traumatic time.

The Mental Health Foundation receives the largest grant awarded today - £574,088 for its "'Strategies for Living" project, which develops the ability of mental health service users to take a more active role in user-led research into mental health matters.

The National Deaf Children's Society receives a grant of £369,267 to develop a national helpline to respond to the needs of parents of babies that have been diagnosed as deaf.

The British Dental Health Foundation gets an award of £344,376 to provide a comprehensive advice service to the public on all aspects of dental health through a telephone helpline, by letter and a new web-based facility.

The Blood Pressure Association, which will launch in October, has been set up to provide support for people suffering from a condition which is often a forerunner of serious heart disease. The grant of £196,641 will set up a membership association which will enable sufferers to take active steps to manage their condition.

Amanda Jordan, Chair of the Charities Board UK Committee, which awarded the grants, said: "These grants will help a number of key organisations delivering vital services to vulnerable people of all ages right across the UK."

Media enquiries:

National Lottery Charities Board: Paul Hensby / Robert Blow, 020 7747 5200

BLISS: Louise Salter, Press officer, 020 7245 0714

Mental Health Foundation: Lesley Warner, 020 7535 7422 or Ana Moreno, 020 7535 7452; out of hours press office number: 07721 587643

National Deaf Children's Society: Molly Baack, 020 7250 1337 ext 204 or Emma Kelly, 020 7250 1337 ext 207; Helpline: 020 7250 0123 Mon-Fri 10am-5pm

British Dental Health Foundation: Diana Lucas, Press officer, 01788 546365; website www.dentalhealth.org.uk

Blood Pressure Association: Nicola Roberts 020 8725 0650 (Mon-Weds only) or 07939 906463

For an application pack for Community involvement and Poverty and disadvantage, please call 0845 7919191.

Notes to editors

1. The National Lottery Charities Board distributes money from the National Lottery to voluntary and community groups. It receives 4.7 pence of every £1 spent on the Lottery. Since 1995 the Charities Board has awarded over £1.6 billion to more than 29,000 groups.

2. A full list of grants awarded today can be found on the Charities Board website at: www.nlcb.org.uk