Thanks to National Lottery players, up to £300M will be used to support the most vulnerable in communities across the UK during the Coronavirus crisis.
By playing The National Lottery, £30M is raised every week on average by National Lottery players for projects big and small across the country. Hundreds of millions of pounds will be distributed to charities and local voluntary organisations over the next few months to help support people through the Covid-19 crisis – from helping support food banks, to causes that combat loneliness and isolation, support for the elderly and projects that support health in the community.
The initiative, enabled by The National Lottery Community Fund, will ensure that National Lottery funding is able to be deployed at scale to help projects the length and breadth of the country in what is the UK’s biggest non-governmental contribution to the efforts in local communities to combat Covid-19.
Dawn Austwick, Chief Executive of The National Lottery Community Fund, said: “The Fund has always supported projects that help people and communities across the UK thrive. And now, the Fund is switching its focus for the foreseeable future on supporting charities seeking to mitigate the unprecedented pressure communities are coming under as the country rallies to overcome the virus.”
Nigel Railton, CEO of Camelot, operator of The National Lottery said: “Week in week out, National Lottery players make a huge difference to the lives of people and communities across the UK. Just by buying a ticket, players in every nation have helped raise over £40 billion for good cause projects, from supporting our athletes to repairing scout huts.
“Now, more than ever, The National Lottery can play a critical role in supporting our communities as we all face this challenge together. Up to £300m raised by National Lottery players will be helping to fund vital work in local communities at a time when it’s needed the most.”
National Lottery players are encouraged to play online at national-lottery.co.uk or by downloading the National Lottery app and only buy their tickets in retail as part of their essential shop.