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Six groups from across Northern Ireland have been chosen to take part in a TV competition that could win them up to £50,000 in Lottery funding to transform the lives of local people. 

The People’s Millions 2014, which takes place on UTV at the end of November, will see community groups go head-to-head in a bid to win a Big Lottery Fund award for life-changing projects.

Two groups each night will make their cases for viewers’ support to take home up to £50,000, with the public voting by phone to help decide who wins the prize.

There are four £50,000 awards up for grabs in the region – one award for each night from 24 November to 26 November, as well as a bonus award for the runner up with the most phone votes across the week.

The is the ninth year that the Big Lottery Fund and UTV have teamed up to give the public the chance to choose where the Lottery good cause cash goes in their area. Since it began in 2005, the competition has funded 35 diverse community projects across Northern Ireland with an incredible £1.9 million in Big Lottery Fund good cause money.

On Monday 24 November, the first two projects to go head-to-head will be Titanic Foundation Ltd’s Build a Beach project and Charis Integrated Cancer Care’s New Ways of Thinking project. Titanic Foundation want to create a recreation and learning space in the heart of Belfast’s Titanic Quarter, while Charis Integrated Cancer Care, which is based near Cookstown, would use the grant to develop activities for people living with cancer and their families.

On Tuesday 25 November, Kaleidoscope’s The Imagine Arts Centre project will battle it out with Compass Advocacy Network Ltd’s Women Wise! project. If Kaleidoscope pulls in the most phone votes they will set up the UK's first dedicated Arts Centre for older people in Newry, however if Compass Advocacy Network Ltd come out on top they will bring together vulnerable and hard to reach women of all ages in the Causeway area to take part in workshops to improve their emotional and physical wellbeing. 

On Wednesday 26 November, the final night of voting, Stroke Association’s The Friendship Network will take on Team HOT’s Help The Homeless project. If Stroke Association tops the polls they will create clusters of trained volunteers across Northern Ireland who will support anyone affected by stroke, but if Team HOT get the most support they will set up a soup kitchen for homeless people in Belfast.

Voting numbers will be available on the day the projects are due to appear on UTV with telephone voting lines* opening at 9am on each day and winners announced the following day.

Joanne McDowell, Big Lottery Fund NI Director, said: “The People’s Millions competition is a brilliant opportunity for people to have a say in how Lottery money is spent in their communities. Voters will have some difficult choices to make in deciding which of the excellent projects going head to head will get their support. But most importantly, the end result will benefit people and communities most in need.”

Michael Wilson, Managing Director, UTV Television, said: “The People's Millions is an exciting way for people across Northern Ireland, through UTV, to win up to £50,000 of Lottery money to improve their communities. We congratulate all the projects on making the final shortlist and wish them all the very best of luck.”

For media enquiries please contact:
Lucy Gollogly: 028 90 551 432 
Out of Hours: 07580811135
Full details of Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available at:www.biglotteryfund.org.uk

Notes to editors

ITV broadcast regions in The People’s Millions: ITV Anglia East; ITV Anglia West; ITV Central East; ITV Central West; ITV Granada; ITV London; ITV Meridian East; ITV Meridian West; ITV Tyne Tees; ITV Westcountry East; ITV Westcountry West, ITV Yorkshire North; ITV Yorkshire South; STV West; STV East; STV North; STV Borders ; UTV; and ITV Wales.

• The People’s Millions is a partnership between Big Lottery Fund and ITV which gives the public the chance to have a say in how Lottery funding is spent in their community through a telephone vote. 
• The competition funds projects that improve the lives of people and communities across the UK.  
• This year 76 awards of up to £50,000 are up for grabs across the UK – four awards in each ITV region (including a bonus award for the runner-up with the highest number of votes).
• To date 599 good causes across the UK have been awarded grants through the contest, sharing in £31.3 million of Lottery funding. Over 3.3million votes have been cast by the public.
• For more information on shortlisted groups, visit The People’s Millions websitewww.peoplesmillions.org.uk 
• As in previous years, ITV and the Big Lottery Fund will use a low cost premium rate telephone number. ITV and Big do not make a profit from the voting telephone numbers. 
• The Big Lottery Fund is responsible for giving out 40% of the money raised by the National Lottery.
• The Fund is committed to bringing real improvements to communities and the lives of people most in need and has been rolling out grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK. Since its inception in 2004 it has awarded close to £6bn.
• In the year ending 31 March 2013, 28% of total National Lottery revenue was awarded to projects. Since the National Lottery began in 1994, £32 billion has been raised and more than 400,000 grants awarded.