Numbers up for Lothian good causes

A TOTAL of £1.5 million worth of support for families, young care leavers and older people is being made available through the Big Lottery Fund.

The fund has revealed that three Edinburgh and West Lothian projects are among 12 in Scotland sharing in 5.9m through its Investing in Communities scheme.

Edinburgh based charity The Dean and Cauvin Trust, which provides a service for some of the city's most vulnerable young people aged 15 to 21, received an award of 770,434.

Home-Start West Lothian received 257,424 to support parents with a child under five through one-to-one volunteering support. Older black and ethnic minority people across Scotland are benefiting from an award of 476,029 to the Edinburgh based Trust Housing Association Ltd.

The project will employ two multilingual staff, who will enable older people from black and ethnic minority backgrounds to gain a range of assistance.

Big Lottery Fund Scotland's chair, Alison Magee, said: "Today we are supporting three very different projects, which will open up new doors of possibility to families, young care leavers and older people."