Big Lottery Fund
Printable version E-mail this to a friend

Lottery millions to help communities bloom for Diamond Jubilee

The Big Lottery Fund in partnership with ITV, and with the approval of Buckingham Palace, is marking the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee with a special roll-out of 60 Lottery grants.

The £60,000 Jubilee People’s Millions awards are being made to go to new projects next year that will inspire or improve local communities.

The Jubilee People’s Millions launched recently (Friday 26 Nov). ITV news presenters Mark Austin and Mary Nightingale showed their support at Buckingham Palace with previous People’s Millions winners.

Community groups across the UK are being invited to bid for a share of the £3.6 million from the Big Lottery Fund good cause pot. Finalists will be showcased on ITV regional news when the public will vote and decide which projects receive the Lottery Diamond Jubilee funding.

Speaking outside Buckingham Palace, ITV News Presenter, Mary Nightingale said: “This is a great way to help mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and for communities to come together to help benefit local people.”  

ITV News Presenter Mark Austin added: “2012 will be a very special year and we hope that The Jubilee People’s Millions will inspire people right across the UK to think about how they could use Lottery funding for the benefit of people in their area.”

Anna Southall, Vice Chair of the Big Lottery Fund, said: “The Jubilee People’s Millions is a fantastic opportunity to call on the strength of British community spirit to create projects that make a real difference.”

“We want to encourage as many people as possible to think about what they could do with £60,000 of Lottery money in their local area with the benefits being reaped during the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee year.”

Details of how to apply can be found on www.biglotteryfund.org.uk or by phoning 0845 10 20 30. Groups have until 4 February 2011 to get their entries in. The projects that receive the most votes will be awarded the funding next summer (2011), in order to be up and running in time for the Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee year, 2012.   

*Photos available of The Jubilee People’s Millions launch at Buckingham Palace with a floral display made up of over 3,000 flowers.

Further Information

Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 020 7211 1888
Out of Hours contact: 07867 500 572

ITV Press Contact: James Macleod on 020 7156 7236
Full details of Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available at: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk

Diary Dates

  • 12noon 4 Feb 2011: Application deadline
  • Early June 2011: Shortlist announcement
  • 27-30 June 2011: Voting week  

Notes to Editors

  • The Jubilee People’s Millions is a Big Lottery Fund initiative in partnership with ITV, and with the approval of Buckingham Palace.
  • Through The Jubilee People’s Millions BIG will be making 60 awards of up to £60,000 to new projects that will take place in 2012 and improve local places or the lives of people in the community.
  • The Jubilee People’s Millions builds on the success of The People’s Millions that has given the public the chance to vote on which local projects should receive lottery good-cause funding since its launch in 2005.
  • Across the week (22 – 26 November 2010) Big Lottery Fund has awarded close to £3.8m to 75 community projects across the UK in this years The People’s Millions competition.
  • The Jubilee People’s Millions will run in place of The People’s Millions competition in 2011.
  • New and existing voluntary or community organisations, schools, local authorities and health bodies are all eligible to apply. The deadline for applications is Friday 4 February 2011.
  • Telephone voting numbers – as with previous years, ITV and the Big Lottery Fund will use a low cost telephone number. ITV and Big do not make a profit from the voting telephone numbers.
  • The Big Lottery Fund (BIG) is the largest distributor of National Lottery good cause funding, responsible for giving out half the money raised for good causes by the National Lottery. BIG is committed to bringing real improvements to communities and the lives of people most in need.
  • Since the National Lottery began in 1994, 28p from every pound spent by the public has gone to good causes. As a result, over £25 billion has now been raised and more than 330,000 grants awarded across arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.

Facing the Future...find out more