WIREDGOV

A north Wales woman who has struggled with anorexia nervosa for more than 40 years has welcomed news that money from the Big Lottery Fund will help people with eating disorders living in more rural areas. 

Anorexia and Bulimia Care (ABC) is one of 53 community-based projects across Wales sharing in the £215,039 awarded under the latest round of the Awards for All small grants programme (Full project descriptions available by clicking here). 

It will use £4,930 to deliver talks to raise awareness of eating disorders in Powys, run workshops with health care professionals and set up three support groups. 

Sarah James, 53, from Bangor has been supported by ABC’s befriending service for over a year (read her full story on the Big Lottery Fund blog). 

She said: “For the last couple of years I’ve been working on my recovery journey. It’s very difficult when you first start out and it’s an on-going battle. I think generally there’s a lot of misunderstanding and many people, including professionals, don’t have the time or patience to want to understand or specialise in this area of mental health. 

“Living in a rural location makes this journey to recovery even more difficult as there’s a lack of support in the community and you’re very much isolated geographically with difficulties accessing transport as well as emotionally due to the illness. 

“I think this is why I find ABC such a supportive organisation - receiving weekly support from people who have personal and professional experience of eating disorders and a depth of understanding is so hard to find. 

“This illness is not a surface problem - suicidal thoughts, self-harm, psychosis are all part of the awful struggle. ABC’s work in Wales will give more people access to support.”

Imogen Smith, of ABC, also welcomed news of the funding. 

“We’re delighted to receive this grant from The Big Lottery Fund Wales which will enable us to develop our services,” she said. “This grant will allow us to offer training for professionals in eating disorders and provide vital support for service users within the rural area of Powys.” 

Volunteers Change Lives in Skewen, Neath Port Talbot, receives £4,560 to pilot a volunteering scheme to pair unemployed adults and younger people with small community and voluntary groups. 

John Thomas from the group said: “The money will help support smaller groups in our area and the volunteers that we have got. The project will help prepare people for work, particularly younger people, who sometimes need a bit of guidance to help them on the right path.” 

In Monmouthshire, south Wales, 21 Plus will spend £5,000 to run a week-long speech and language therapy camp for up to 20 children, aged five to 18, with Down's Syndrome while Blind in Business Trust in Cardiff receives £5,000 to loan specialist access technology to young blind people aged 16 to 18 so they can improve their qualifications.. 

Abermorddu CP School in Flintshire north Wales gets £5,000 to develop and improve the school's community facilities, including an orchard, allotment area, wildlife area, pond and polytunnel. 

Welcoming the news, assistant headteacher Tracy Jeffcott said: “It will make a massive difference to our outside facilities. Our pond will be able to be used for both Science and recreational lessons and the creation of a Forest Schools area on the school field will enhance learning.” 

Ferryside Men's Sheds Association in Carmarthenshire will spend £5,000 to start up a project that aims to get older men together, share and learn new skills. Money will fund tools and equipment as well as help promote the project in the local area. 

Gareth Williams, Awards for All Programme Manager for the Big Lottery Fund in Wales, said: “Awards for All is having a positive impact throughout Wales. Money is helping to establish groups, societies and clubs, promoting learning, increasing volunteering opportunities and helping to build stronger communities.”

Available in English and Welsh, application forms are available to download fromwww.awardsforall.org.uk or by phone on 0845 4 10 20 30. 

Further Information: 

Ben Payne - Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 01686 611720 
Public Enquiries Line: 08454 102030 Textphone: 0845 6021 659

Full details of the Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available at:www.biglotteryfund.org.uk  
Follow BIG on Twitter: www.twitter.com/biglotterywales  
Find BIG on facebook: www.facebook.com/biglotteryfundwales   

Notes to Editors:

• The Big Lottery Fund supports the aspirations of people who want to make life better for their communities across the UK. We are responsible for giving out 40% of the money raised by the National Lottery and invest over £650 million a year in projects big and small in health, education, environment and charitable purposes.
• Since June 2004 we have awarded over £6.5billion to projects that make a difference to people and communities in need, from early years intervention to commemorative travel funding for World War Two veterans.
• Since the National Lottery began in 1994, £33 billion has been raised and more than 450,000 grants awarded.