£271,200 Lottery lifeline handed to Telford advice group

Telford & The Wrekin Senior Citizens Forum was one of four Shropshire groups to receive a grant from the Big Lottery fund this week, and co-ordinator, Anne-Marie Davies, said the £271,200 would ensure it has a future.

She said: "This will make a huge difference. We were looking at the possibility that we would have to fold by the end of the year.

"This means we have a vital service still going for the next five years.

• Telford & The Wrekin Senior Citizens Forum received £271,200 from the Big Lottery Fund, and will use the money to continue helping more than 2,000 older people.

• Leebotwood Village Hall was granted £10,000 to replace an old and unsafe floor. This will improve the accessibility of the village hall, for the local community to enjoy.

• The Wrekin View Primary School and Nursery was awarded £9,978.26 for its “Aiming High Through Enterprise” project.

• St Martins Centre Project received £3,215 for its “Community Kitchen”.

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"We are absolutely delighted, we have put in a lot of lot of hard work but it has really paid off."

The group represents 2,200 members and provides a number of services including special music workshops for people with dementia, advice and support on national or local issues, as well as computer lessons – either at home or in group sessions.

Mrs Davies explained that the group does its best to help older people with advice and support to tackle issues of concerns.

She said: "We are basically an advice and support programme. We provide a voice role to local people so if they have concerns about things, be they local or national, we help them have a voice so they can raise those issues.

"We also hopefully help to resolve some of the them. If they do not know where to go to we can point them in the right direction.

She added: "I think it is extremely important because it is a one stop shop for them to come to us with problems and concerns."

Three other groups also received funding with Leebotwood Village Hall being granted £10,000 to replace an old and unsafe floor.

The St Martins Centre Project received £3,215 for its Community Kitchen, while the Wrekin View Primary School & Nursery was awarded £9,978.26 for its Aiming High Through Enterprise project.

This is designed to explore children's understanding of the world of work through a series of programmes and projects, enterprise workshops, challenge days and visits to local businesses.

Adrian Pembleton, from the nursery, said: "We are thrilled to have been successful in our bid. It gives us the opportunity to move forward with an element of the curriculum which we have been unable to do so far.

"This is in the area of key planning skills. This will be a big move forward for us over the next 12 months.

"A lot of time and thought went into the planning for the bid. We want to make sure that every child benefits from this money."