The National Lottery grants £15m to UK green space initiatives
The National Lottery has begun its £15m ($20.1m) drive to develop more green spaces in 40 UK towns and cities.
Key points:
– National Lottery Heritage Fund launches 10-year partnership with the National Trust and Natural England
– A £15m ($20.1m) grant is being distributed through 19 partnerships to 40 UK towns and cities
– Birmingham declared UK’s first official Nature City
The Nature Towns and Cities project is a combined effort from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the National Trust and Natural England to rejuvenate Britain and Northern Ireland’s towns and cities by putting funding into public parks and green spaces.
A £15m fund has been awarded to 19 separate projects in all four home nations to help local authorities and community partners begin the process of development.
Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, celebrated the work that it has already done in this area: “We have invested over £1bn in regenerating over 900 urban parks and green spaces over the last 30 years, helping nature thrive in towns everywhere.”
The announcement also celebrates the assignment of Birmingham as the UK’s first accredited Nature City and Poole as the first Nature Town.
Good to know: The UK National Lottery celebrated its 30th anniversary last year. Only around 1% of revenue is retained as profit
Examples of the fund’s distribution include an £850,514 award in Belfast to co-design a plan for nature recovery across the city and surrounding rural areas.
McGuinness went on to say: “This exciting initiative, working with partners right across the UK, will build on this investment and give millions of people better access to nature close to home.”
The largest award was to the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, which received 95% of the sum they applied for, totalling £999,951.
38 councils applied for grants with 19 being rejected.
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