Big announcement!

Today the organisers announce the route of the 2010 Tour de France..............I await that news with baited breath. But of course the really big news is mentioned below. All I can say in response to this news is that we are all gobsmacked and incredibly grateful to the public who spend millions on the National Lottery!!

This appears on the Big Lottery, Reaching Communities website.

An England-wide scheme to provide a listening ear to adults who suffered trauma in their childhood is amongst 40 projects receiving funding today from the Big Lottery Fund.
Today’s announcement sees close to £11 million from BIG’s Reaching Communities programme awarded to organisations working with some of the most vulnerable and socially excluded people across the country.
Sanjay Dighe, Chair of the Big Lottery Fund’s England Committee, said: “We are delighted to see over £10.9 million going right into the heart of communities, providing support to the people who most need it. There are projects offering assistance for carers, disabled people, those with particular health conditions and a host of others. The 40 projects funded today are vital in improving health and well-being, increasing opportunities for people of all ages and building stronger communities.”

The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (NAPAC) receives £495,210 to increase the capacity of their national freephone support line for adults who suffered abuse as children. Volunteers are trained to offer a sympathetic ear, allowing callers the opportunity to discuss their experiences with a non-judgmental listener and be signposted to other organisations that can help them deal with past issues face-to-face.
NAPAC receives approximately 1000 calls per week and is able to answer just six per cent of these, most of which are first-time callers. The grant will enable them to expand its volunteer base to answer more of these calls. They also do presentations to GPs and other agencies as part of a campaign to raise awareness.

Chief Executive Pete Saunders said: “I cannot overstate the significance of this grant, and what it will enable NAPAC to achieve. We provide the UK’s only national free phone support line for adults who suffered any type of abuse in childhood and the Reaching Communities funding will enable us to reach out to this huge and isolated community.
“It’s easy to forget that abused children grow up and it is so important they, as adults, are given the opportunity to heal and move on with their lives. That is what we do at NAPAC: we help support people in their healing journey through the provision of a volunteer-run support line that is free and available every day of the working week. It was only lack of funding that hampered our plans to expand and meet the ever-growing demand for our unique service. This funding has untied our hands and will enable that to happen.”