Sanjay Dighé - England Chair
Sanjay Dighé: Hello, my name is Sanjay Dighé and I'm the country chair for big in England.
Did you know that Big awards over £1 million a day in England, benefiting hundreds of communities and thousands of projects? At the moment we've got two funding programmes opened - one is "Reaching Communities", which allows us to award up to £500,000.00 over five years. This is obviously for those organisations that are well established and have large projects that they want us to fund. We also have a smaller programme which is "Awards for all", which award grants of up to £10,000. This is a very good starting point for organisations which may not have applied to us before, which have very good ideas that they want to start implementing which will have a direct and immediate impact on their communities.
In this podcast, I'll be taking questions from local community groups, grassroots projects and beneficiaries of Big Lottery Fund grants about our current and future funding programmes.
Remember, you can put your questions to Big Lottery Fund UK's Chair, Sir Clive Booth, who's taking part in a live web chat on March 16. To find out more and to submit your questions, go to bigchat.org.uk
John: Hello, this is John Bisset here from Gibson Garden's Community Radio projects here in the London Borough of Hackney. One of your funding criteria is projects that include social enterprise; and I wondered how exactly you define 'social enterprise'?
Sanjay Dighé: John, I'm really glad you asked that question because 'social enterprises' is an area we're really excited about and committed to.
As you know 'social enterprise doesn't really have a legal definition but as far as we're concern it has two components. It's got the social side - it means it's going to be doing something which will help the community and has something which is wider than purely a profit motive. But it's also an enterprise, which means it's run along proper business lines with a proper balance sheet; and with people working in a very professional way.
So we see the social enterprise as being part of the wider voluntary and community sector; and we want to try and encourage social enterprises to apply for funding as much as possible. So the definition is an organisation that works for and with the community, but is more than just a voluntary organisation without a profit motive behind it.
Emma: Hello, I'm Emma Steward from 'Women Like Us'. And my question is: Social Enterprises trade in the market place to achieve social aims. By our very nature, we must be innovative as we're about providing innovative, sustainable business solutions to social problems. However, often getting funding for this development of new services and ideas, as opposed to the delivery of services is what can be so challenging for social enterprises. Is this an area that Big sees itself as having a role in helping social enterprises going forward?
Sanjay Dighé: Emma, it's really good to hear from a social enterprise like 'Women Like Us' which is doing such a great work in helping women, particularly under the current circumstances. We are very much committed to helping organisations like yours, and as part of that we funded something called 'ISEE', which stands for 'Investing in Social Enterprise Expansion'. And that covers a variety of different projects such as leadership development, expansion of the school of social entrepreneurs and various other activities which are supporting social enterprises. And we will continue to make sure that the funding goes to those projects, which will mean that they will get the assistance that, they need.
Scot: Hello, I'm Scot Cain and I'm the Deputy Chief Executive of Enterprise UK. My question is this: The Big Lottery is unleashing young people's creativity and entrepreneur spirit by backing Enterprise UK's 'Make your mark with a Tenner' this year. Could you explain why this is particularly timely and how it fits into your wider work?
Sanjay Dighé: I'm really excited about 'Make your mark with a Tenner' being rolled out all across England. And it fits into our work because it covers two areas which are very, very important as far as we're concerned.
One, is social enterprise, encouraging organisations and individuals to work in a business-like way, but in a way which actually helps the community, rather than simply having a profit motive behind it. And also, it's giving something for young people to expire to. We're giving them the opportunity to be given some responsibility - to go out and demonstrate what they can do, how they can achieve things which are beneficial both for the wider community and for themselves. And that meets all the objective that Big is trying to meet both this year and throughout the next four or five years.
If you have a question about the Big Lottery Fund, then make sure you take part in the Bigchat on March 16. Big's UK Chair, Sir Clive Booth will be answering your questions as part of a live webchat. To find out more, go to bigchat.org.uk
Frank Hewitt - Northern Ireland Chair
Frank Hewitt: Hello. My name is Frank Hewit and I'm the Country Chair for the Big Lottery Fund in Northern Ireland.
As Big's newest arrival, I was amazed to discover that over the past five years, we have awarded more than £159 million in Northern Ireland, benefiting hundreds of communities and thousands of people. And we have big plans for the future.
Let me tell you a little bit about the programmes we hope to roll out in the coming months. They will support activities that'll improve the mental health and wellbeing of people of all ages, and make community venues more energy efficient. They will support the most vulnerable people in our society - that is older people and young people most at risk.
We also want to ensure that we support people to become better connected by making more use of local spaces and places. We will be developing a programme that will tackle the very real issue in Northern Ireland of alcohol misuse through projects which will support people, families and the wider community. And of course, our popular "Awards for all" programme continues to offer grants of up to £10,000 to a wide range of projects across Northern Ireland.
In this podcast, I'll be taking questions from local community groups, grass root projects and beneficiaries of Big Lottery Fund grants about our current and future programmes. And remember, you can put your questions to Big Lottery Fund UK Chair, Sir Clive Booth, who's taking part in a live web chat on the March 16. To find out more and to submit your questions, go to bigchat.org.uk
Brian McCrory: My name is Brian McCrory. I sit on the Drumgor Detachted Youth Work Project. I want to thank you for your commitment to young people by providing £150,000 to young people at risk. My question to you is why did you decide to take this theme?
Frank Hewitt: Very good question. When you're dealing with priorities, it's sometimes quite difficult to decide how to allocate funding and to identify the projects that seem to be the most valuable and the most important. In the case of Big, we decided to actually ask the people who would be most likely to be affected. So we engaged in a very lengthy and quite wide spread consultation exercise. And it was largely as a result of that, that we identified young people as one of the groups of people in our society that most need our help.
I suppose I have a personal interest in this topic as well, in that for most of my career, I have been working to bring employment to Northern Ireland. And that job to a large degree benefited young people who had good education, who had a good work ethic, who actually had the capability to find jobs. The people we want to help with our new programmes are people who might fall through that net, people who would find it difficult to find jobs, people who are experiencing particular difficulties coming out of care, coming out of prison. But we want to somehow bring them back into the mainstream, to give them the opportunity to enjoy the real economic benefits that Northern Ireland has to offer our young people.
Karen McAllister: Hello, my name is Karen McAllister and I'm the Assistant Director of Vopec - Voice of Young People in Care. We're a children's charity in Northern Ireland, giving a voice to looked after children in Northern Ireland and my question is: What is the Big Lottery's vision for improving the life chances for children in need in Northern Ireland?
Frank Hewitt: Well, I'm glad you came forward Karen. That actually is a really tough one. And I suppose, it's one of the aspect of my work that I find most exciting and most challenging.
Children in Northern Ireland face the same kind of problems like children in other parts of the UK. But there are particular degrees of difficulties that I think exist in Northern Ireland. And that's to try and help children with learning difficulties, children that come from the poorer parts of our community - and try and give them the opportunity to carve for themselves a future in Northern Ireland.
One of the projects that I visited recently was a pre-school project that aimed to help young children with learning difficulties, social difficulties, and behavioural difficulties. It was fascinating to see how once they became integrated, entered the groups and into society, suddenly those problem seem to be, not necessarily over come, but certainly successfully tackled.
So, one of the things that I'd want to see over the next 4 or 5 years, is to see those young people who perhaps don't enjoy the benefits that other sections of the community in Northern Ireland, to see how they can be brought more into the mainstream. And again, try to help them to take advantage of the opportunities that Northern Ireland's growth and development is offering.
Frank Hewitt: The next question has come in from Stephanie English, who is a project co-ordinator for the Health for Life project in Deary, which is improving the health and well-being of older people in the city. Stephanie asked: You're new to your role as Northern Ireland chair, but where do you see Big in five years? What will it have done and what do you think you can bring to the role?
I would like to think that Big would have built on the enormous success that it has achieved in the last 5 years. That we will be helping older people to become part of the mainstream in Northern Ireland, to feel that life hasn't pass them bye - that there are still opportunities that they can pursue. That we will have a society in Northern Ireland that values its older people.
Most of my career has been involved in economic development and that gives me access to a lot of people in the private sector. I think there is enormous opportunity for Big to work more closely with the private sector. I'd like to think that in 5 years, the older section of community in Northern Ireland will be looking back and saying they really did help us a lot.
If you have a question about the Big Lottery Fund, then make sure you take part in the big chat on March the 16th. Big's UK Chair, Sir Clive Booth will be answering your questions as part of a live web chat. To find out more, go to bigchat.org.uk
Alison Magee - Scotland Chair
Alison McGee: Hello. My name is Alison McGee and I'm the Scotland chair for the Big Lottery Fund.
On average, the Big Lottery Fund in Scotland has been making awards worth around a million pounds a week, benefit hundreds of communities and thousands of people across the country.
Our small grants programmes are still open, "Awards for All", probably the best know of all our grants programmes and "Investing in Ideas", and "2014 Communities". I'm delighted to say that we have about £400 million to invest in Scotland in our new grants programme which will run right through to 2015.
In this podcast, I will be taking questions from local community groups, grass root projects and beneficiaries of Big Lottery Fund grants about our current and future funding programmes. Remember, you can put your questions to Big Lottery Fund UK Chair, Sir Clive Booth, who's taking part in a live web chat on the March the 16. To find out more and to submit your questions, go to bigchat.org.uk
Brian Smith: Hi, my name is Brian Smith. I'm a volunteer for the community radio station in and around Aberdeen. What will you able to fund through these new programmes?
Alison McGee: That's a very good and interesting question from Brian. I am very glad to say that we will have about £400 million on current forecast to invest in our new programmes going up to 2015.
We've already announced that £50 million of that will go to address two areas of very deep need. They are supporting people with dementia and their carers, and supporting young people who are leaving the care system.
Our consultation, which was very, very well supported and well responded to, told us that what people wanted to see was continuity and stability with our first "investing in communities" programme. And that's what we've been looking at.
We want 'Investing in Communities, mark 2, if you like to have clear aims and to provide that stability and continuity. We want it to have its primary focus in tackling need, and in particular, addressing inequalities. We will be launching 'investing in communities, mark 2, at the end of June this year.
It's going to have 3 core investment areas which I think will sound quite familiar. Life's transitions, a new growing communities asset programme and the supporting 21st century life programme. So there will be continuity.
Morray Dawson: Hello, this is Morris Dorsten from Station house in Aberdeen. Will investing in ideas on 'Awards for All' programmes continues in its present form?
Alison McGee: Yes, our small grants programmes, 'Investing in Ideas' and 'Awards for All' have remained open and will remain open.
'Awards for all' is a very well know, widely understood programme. We've been investing about £10 million a year in 'Awards for all' and our current plans are to continue with that.
'Investing in Ideas', is also a very good programme. This enables you to work up your idea, find out whether you need business support, financial advice, planning permission and so on, before you go on to the big full scale application. So those programmes will remain opened. Of course, there are our other small grants programmes, '2014 Communities', which is based around the run into the Commonwealth games. And that is also open and will stay open until 2014. And that is, of course for grants of up to £1000 to encourage physical activities.
Serge Merone: Hello, my name is Serge Merone. I'm working for Perth and Kinross Council. I'm also the chair of the Scottish Local Authority funding group. My question for the chair is, how Big supports your applicants and is its Big's intention to work with local partners to provide such support?
Alison McGee: Again that is a very good question because one of the strong outcomes from the consultation was that many community groups felt that more support would help them put in good applications and would help them to be certain about their outcomes. So, we really are looking very closely at integrating development support into the whole process when we open 'Investing in Communities' in June.
By that we mean, business, planning, financial planning and management, and all the things the consultation has told us applicants and would be applicants would be applicants would like to see. That, of course, doesn't take away from 'Investing in Ideas'. We still going to have that small grants programme as I've already said. But what we are going to be intending to do is to incorporate development support and possibly, development funding into the application process. This is a clear response to what people told us.
The second part of Serge's question is also very important. Another thing that people told us is that they sometimes felt that networks and mentoring was important. So, we're going to be looking at that. We certainly hope to be working closely with local partners. I think too that there is a second part to that question. That is we often get applications in where community groups have perhaps been working together. And we do think that collaboration and working together often can strengthen applications, and that's something else we'll be encouraging.
If you have a question about the Big Lottery Fund, then make sure you take part in the big chat on March the 16th. Big's UK Chair, Sir Clive Booth will be answering your questions as part of a live web chat. To find out more, go to bigchat.org.uk
Huw Vaughan Thomas - Wales Chair
Huw Vaughan Thomas: Hello, my name is Huw Vaughan-Thomas. I'm the Country Chair for the Big Lottery Fund in Wales.
Did you know that, on average, Big in Wales gives out a million pounds per week, benefitting hundreds of communities and thousands of people across Wales every year. That's well over 600 million pounds we've spent in Wales since the Lottery began and we've up to 240 million pounds more to distribute over the next five years.
We're interested in helping people and neighbourhoods help themselves. We've listened extensively to what the people of Wales have told us and we're now responding to what we heard, with a range of new and existing funding programmes including ones specifically aimed at helping older people.
In this podcast I'll be taking questions from local community groups, grassroots projects and people who've benefitted from Big Lottery Fund grants about our current and future funding programmes but remember you can put your questions to Big Lottery Fund's UK Chair Sir Clive Booth, who's taking part in a live webchat on March 16th. To find out more and submit your questions go to bigchat.org.uk
Donald Reece : My name is Donald Reece. I live in Port Talbot and I use the facilities of Age Concern. My question is: when will the programme begin and how long will the project last for? And what types of activities will the older people's programmes fund?
Huw Vaughan Thomas: Thanks very much for that question, Donald. We'll be launching the older people's programme in June this year and we hope to be able to fund a range of projects which are aimed at befriending older people and also helping organisations act as advocates for older people in the community. Twenty million pounds is one of our new pattern of programmes and we'll be expecting to spend that money over the next three to five years.
Ann Collins : Hello, I'm Ann Collins, Chief Executive Officer of Age Concern, Neath, Port Talbot. I understand that the Big Lottery Fund is very keen on partnership bids for older peoples' programme. And we all appreciate how much effort and hard work is involved in putting together such a bid, especially for small charitable organisations. My question is, will the Big Lottery Fund be able to offer advice and support to organisations and groups who wish to submit partnership bids?
Huw Vaughan Thomas: Thanks for that question, Anne. You and I know that projects which actually work together with a range of other organisations are both more effective and actually last longer. They are much more sustainable. So we want to encourage the bids which are coming forward for the older people's programme to show that they are already thinking about the partnerships they'll be working in. We're not going to set out what type of partnerships, that's for the projects themselves. But certainly we'll be on hand to help organisations navigate the path towards making links and that is certainly something we're going to be very much alive to.
Richard Jones: Hello there, it's Richard Jones here from the Older People's Commissioner for Wales. Question here: defining advocacy and befriending is sometimes a contentious issue. How do you propose to define the terms for the purpose of the funding exercise?
Huw Vaughan Thomas: Thanks for that, Richard. Advocacy and befriending are the two key strands of our older people's programme and we've worked quite hard with stakeholders to make sure that we are all using a roughly agreed definition which we'll be publishing obviously as part of the programme guide.
Broadly speaking advocacy is aimed at those projects which help older people say what they want, help older people secure their rights, represent their interests and obtain the services they need.
Whereas befriending is a much wider range of activity, which could include friendship groups, telephone befriending, befriending people with special needs in the community and I hope actually that we will get an exciting range of projects covering both strands.
If you have a question about the Big Lottery Fund then make sure you take part in the Big Chat on March 16h. Big's UK Chair, Sir Clive Booth, will be answering your questions as part of a live webchat. To find out more go to bigchat.org.uk.
To find out more about the work of the Big Lottery Fund in Wales and our plans for the future please go to biglotteryfund.org.uk/wales
Huw Vaughan Thomas - Wales Chair (Cymraeg)
Huw Vaughan Thomas: Helo, Huw Vaughan-Thomas yw fy enw i. Fi yw'r Cadeirydd Gwlad ar gyfer y Gronfa Loteri Fawr yng Nghymru.
Wyddoch chi fod y Gronfa Loteri Fawr, ar gyfartaledd, yn dosbarthu miliwn o bunnoedd yr wythnos, gan greu buddion ar gyfer cannoedd o gymunedau a miloedd o bobl ar draws Cymru bob blwyddyn? Mae hynny'n cyfateb i wario dros 600 miliwn o bunnoedd yng Nghymru ers i'r Loteri ddechrau, ac mae gennym hyd at 240 miliwn o bunnoedd yn fwy i'w ddosbarthu dros y pum mlynedd nesaf.
Ein cenhadaeth ni yw helpu pobl a chymdogaethau i helpu eu hunain. Rydym wedi gwrando'n helaeth ar yr hyn y mae pobl Cymru wedi'i ddweud wrthym ac rydym bellach yn ymateb i'r hyn rydym wedi'i glywed, gydag amrywiaeth o raglenni ariannu newydd, a rhai sy'n bodoli eisoes, gan gynnwys rhai sydd ¢'r nod penodol o helpu pobl h·n.
Yn y podlediad hwn, byddwn yn cymryd cwestiynau gan grwpiau cymunedol lleol, prosiectau cymunedol a phobl sydd wedi elwa o grantiau'r Gronfa Loteri Fawr yngl·n ¢'n rhaglenni ariannu presennol a'r rhai sydd gennym ar gyfer y dyfodol, ond cofiwch y gallwch gyflwyno'ch cwestiynau i Gadeirydd DU y Gronfa Loteri Fawr, Syr Clive Booth, a fydd yn cymryd rhan mewn sgwrs fyw dros y we ar 16 Mawrth. I gael gwybod mwy a chyflwyno'ch cwestiynau, ewch i bigchat.org.uk
Donald Reece : Donald Reece yw fy enw i. Rwy'n byw ym Mhort Talbot ac yn defnyddio cyfleusterau Age Concern. Fy nghwestiwn yw: pryd bydd y rhaglen yn dechrau ac am faint bydd y prosiect yn para? A pha fath o weithgareddau fydd y rhaglen pobl h·n yn eu hariannu?
Huw Vaughan Thomas: Diolch yn fawr am y cwestiwn, Donald. Byddwn yn lansio'r rhaglen pobl h·n ym mis Mehefin eleni a gobeithiwn y bydd modd i ni ariannu amrywiaeth o brosiectau sydd ¢'r nod o fod yn gyfaill i bobl h·n a helpu sefydliadau sy'n gweithredu fel eiriolwyr i bobl h·n yn y gymuned hefyd. Mae ugain miliwn o bunnoedd yn un o'n patrwm newydd o raglenni, a disgwyliwn y byddwn yn gwario'r arian hwnnw dros y tair i bum mlynedd nesaf.
Ann Collins : Helo, Ann Collins ydw i, Prif Weithredwr Age Concern Castell-nedd Port Talbot. Rwy'n deall bod y Gronfa Loteri Fawr yn awyddus iawn i gael cynigion partneriaeth ar gyfer rhaglenni pobl h·n. Ac rydym i gyd yn gwerthfawrogi faint o ymdrech a gwaith caled sy'n mynd i mewn i roi cynnig o'r fath at ei gilydd, yn enwedig ar gyfer sefydliadau elusennol bach. Fy nghwestiwn yw, a fydd modd i'r Gronfa Loteri Fawr gynnig cyngor a chefnogaeth i sefydliadau a grwpiau sydd am gyflwyno cynigion partneriaeth.
Huw Vaughan Thomas: Diolch am y cwestiwn, Anne. Rydych chithau a rwyf innau'n gwybod bod prosiectau sy'n cydweithio gydag amrywiaeth o sefydliadau eraill yn fwy effeithiol ac yn para am gyfnod hwy. Maent yn llawer mwy cynaliadwy. Felly, rydym am annog y cynigion a fydd yn dod i'r amlwg ar gyfer y rhaglen pobl h·n i ddangos eu bod eisoes yn ystyried y partneriaethau y byddant yn gweithio ynddynt. Nid ydym yn mynd i amlinellu pa fath o bartneriaethau y byddant, y prosiectau eu hunain fydd yn penderfynu ar hynny. Ond byddwn wrth law yn bendant i helpu sefydliadau ar hyd y llwybr tuag at greu cysylltiadau ac mae hynny'n rhywbeth y byddwn yn ymwybodol iawn ohono.
Richard Jones: Helo, Richard Jones yma, o swyddfa Comisiynydd Pobl H·n Cymru. Mae cwestiwn gennyf: Mae diffinio eirioli a bod yn gyfaill weithiau'n bwnc llosg. Sut ydych chi'n bwriadu diffinio'r cylch gorchwyl at ddiben yr ymarfer ariannu?
Huw Vaughan Thomas: Diolch am hynny, Richard. Eirioli a Bod yn Gyfaill yw dau linyn allweddol ein rhaglen pobl h·n ac rydym wedi gweithio'n eithaf caled gyda budd-ddeiliaid i sicrhau ein bod i gyd yn defnyddio diffiniad a gytunwyd yn fras, y byddwn yn ei gyhoeddi fel rhan o arweiniad y rhaglen.
Yn fras, mae eirioli wedi'i anelu at y prosiectau hynny sy'n helpu pobl h·n i leisio eu barn, sicrhau eu hawliau, cynrychioli eu buddion a dod o hyd i'r gwasanaethau y mae eu hangen arnynt.
Ac mae bod yn gyfaill yn faes gweithgarwch llawer ehangach, a allai gynnwys grwpiau cyfeillgarwch, bod yn gyfaill dros y ff´n, bod yn gyfaill i bobl ag anghenion arbennig yn y gymuned, ac rwy'n gobeithio y byddwn yn cael amrywiaeth gyffrous o brosiectau sy'n ymwneud ¢'r ddau linyn.
Os oes gennych gwestiwn yngl·n ¢'r Gronfa Loteri Fawr, sicrhewch eich bod yn cymryd rhan yn y Sgwrs Fawr ar 16 Mawrth. Bydd Cadeirydd DU y Gronfa, Syr Clive Booth, yn ateb eich cwestiynau fel rhan o sgwrs fyw dros y we. I gael gwybod mwy, ewch i bigchat.org.uk.
I gael gwybod mwy am waith y Gronfa Loteri Fawr yng Nghymru a'n cynlluniau ar gyfer y dyfodol, ewch i cronfaloterifawr.org.uk
