£500k charity grant for travelling community fund

A charity working with members of the travelling community has welcomed a Lottery grant of more than £500,000.
Members of the Green Guerrillas and Article 12 in Scotland.Members of the Green Guerrillas and Article 12 in Scotland.
Members of the Green Guerrillas and Article 12 in Scotland.

Human rights group Article 12 has been awarded the cash to help young people access further education, training and jobs.

The £535,361 grant is part of the latest Big Lottery Fund boost for Scottish communities, with awards totalling more than £3.3 million.

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Article 12 director Lynne Tammi said: “In the past, the Big Lottery Fund has helped us to move young people with little formal education to a position where they are working towards university level qualifications.

“This award means we will be able to continue with this work and involve many more young people in our learning programmes.”

Tenants struggling to make ends meet will benefit from an award of £548,462 to The Link Group.

It will use the cash to recruit and train more advisers to help tenants manage their debt and sort out their finances.

Chief executive Craig Sanderson said: “This will allow us to engage with our tenants to help them deal with the challenges they face through ever increasing pressures on their household budgets.

“We will also use the funding to develop early intervention initiatives, provide financial education, support and advice to better equip our tenants to deal with life events that may result in escalation into debt. “

A further four groups received awards: Clan Cancer Support in Aberdeenshire; Glenboig Neighbourhood House in North Lanarkshire; Crossroads Caring for Carers in Argyll and Bute and the Phoenix Community Health Project in Inverclyde.

Maureen McGinn, chairwoman of Big Lottery Fund Scotland, said: “Our Big Lottery Fund support focuses on people and communities in greatest need.

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“With today’s awards, six projects across the country will help people facing a variety of challenge move through tough times to a better future.

“From connecting with hard to reach youngsters and giving them the skills and confidence to move on to training, to providing vital advice and support to tenants at risk of spiralling into debt, this life changing money will make a huge difference to thousands of people across the country.”