A multi-million pound package of investment in the regeneration of the nation’s health and well-being is being delivered today by the Big Lottery Fund.

A heavy-weight £126 million is being rolled out nationally and regionally across England with the aim of bringing whole communities – young and old – into good mental and physical health by promoting exercise and healthy eating.

The Octogenarian band the Zimmers, who shot to fame with their version of The Who’s My Generation, have welcomed the Well-being awards, particularly the £15.1 million granted to Age Concern. Alf Carretta, the 90 year old lead singer of the band, said: “The Big Lottery Fund is certainly talking about our generation with this announcement today.

“Our 40 strong band has a combined age of around 3,000 years and there’s plenty of older people out there who are just like us, active and fighting fit! The money will give older people the opportunity to get out there, remain active and keep the mind sharp – it’s fantastic news!”

Some of the country’s best-known promoters of community health and well-being are among the lead organisations that will be implementing the initiatives, including Age Concern, MIND (the National Association for Mental Health), Sustrans, the School Food Trust, and The Foyer Federation.

The money is from the Big Lottery Fund’s Well-Being programme and the 14 organisations receiving multi-million pound funding today share the aim of creating healthier lifestyles and a better quality of life for countless people throughout the country, particularly those most in need including older people and young homeless.

Five national organisations will share a massive £73 million investment to launch a variety of nation-wide projects designed to perform a makeover for millions of people, moulding healthier children, parents and communities in the process.

Lottery funding will also impact throughout the regions with nine organisations sharing over £52 million to provide services focusing on mental health, physical activity and healthy eating.

Age Concern is leading the way on invigorating over 50s with a £15.1 million funding award that will help them show that age is no barrier to fitness and wellbeing. Its Fit as a Fiddle scheme will help improve mental well-being through activity and healthy eating.

Age Concern will deliver 26 projects ranging from tailored physical activities for older people, led by older mentors, to producing educational resources encouraging activity and good eating habits.  The approach - a fit body equates to a fit mind - plans to combat dementia and depression and also encourage older people to become involved in community activities.

Gordon Lishman, Director General of Age Concern England, said: “This grant will enable us to deliver truly life-changing benefits to thousands of older people across the UK.  We know from our work with older people, that improved physical health and healthy eating goes hand-in-hand with improved mental well-being.”

Concentrating on the mental health concerns of the populace is also the focus of MIND (the National Association for Mental Health). With its £16million award, MIND plan to raise awareness about mental health issues and reduce the stigma surrounding people who suffer from mental or emotional distress.

The Moving People portfolio aims to stamp out discrimination and stigma through an England-wide campaign by improving public understanding and raising people’s aspirations.  ‘Get Moving’ – a national project to promote mass participation events centring on mental and physical well-being in the build-up to the 2012 Olympics will also be launched.

In total 34 national projects will be implemented to enhance the physical and mental health of sufferers.

Paul Farmer, Chief Executive of MIND said: “Attitudes to mental health are stuck in the Victorian asylum. This fantastic opportunity is our chance to start to change the views of society about mental health, giving people with mental health problems equal rights, altering behaviour by bringing people together in communities across England and breaking down barriers through a host of targeted activities.  

“We are delighted that the Big Lottery Fund has recognised that need, and its support will enable people with mental health problems to tackle one of the biggest issues they face today.”  

From matters of the mind to improving the gastronomic health of England, the School Food Trust (SFT) aim to raise the nutritional uptake and improve the eating habits of the nation. Its £20million grant will fuel healthy appetites through its ‘Let’s Get Cooking’ (LGC) programme.

The SFT aims to have a positive impact on the eating habits of school children and their families as well as the wider community. The portfolio contains five projects, with LGC the main ingredient.

Under LGC some 3,000 new cooking clubs will be established in school and community settings to improve cooking skills and food knowledge. Around 2,000 existing clubs will help extend the project’s reach.

Four other major partnership projects will feed into the LGC initiative expanding and developing its impact particularly with marginalised groups - this includes the Prince’s Trust, Business in the Community, The Improvement Foundation, and Magic Outcomes. Projects will also be set up to encourage healthy eating with the overall programme expected to benefit over one million people.

Prue Leith, Chair of the School Food Trust, said: “Let’s Get Cooking will revive cooking skills on a national scale. It’s our mission to see that every child, and a good few parents, learn what should be recognised as an essential life skill.”

£24.9 million has already been awarded to healthy eating and anti-obesity projects through the Soil Association and MEND (Mind, Exercise, Nutrition…Do It!)

One of the benefits of healthy eating is improved energy levels. A partnership of twelve health, transport and environmental groups, led by Sustrans Limited, will be aiming to tap into that increased reservoir of stamina while encouraging people to get off the sofa.

With a £19.9 million award, the partnership known collectively as the Active Travel Consortium will target over two million people through the four-year nation-wide campaign. It plans to identify people who are currently inactive and help them incorporate cycling and walking into their everyday lives, eventually improving their physical and mental well-being.

The Consortium will deliver 50 funding level projects, which in turn will feed over 1,000 smaller projects. The projects will concentrate on getting people active in various areas. From travelling to school and work to encouraging people to ditch the car and use their own steam on small journeys.

In addition the project will enhance local environments to make them safer and more attractive for walking and cycling.

Sustrans Operations Director, Malcolm Shepherd, said: “This funding will allow the Active Travel Consortium to change the lives of millions of people across the UK. The practical work we have planned will enable and encourage more people of all ages to walk and cycle as part of their everyday lives.

“The combined experience of the ATC members make it a powerful force for change, specifically amongst those people who are currently not able to walk or cycle. And with health and the environment causing growing concern this funding could not have come at a better time”.

The fifth national award is to The Foyer Federation, a charity which focuses on providing accommodation to homeless young people aged 16 to 25. Their £2.5 million grant will run projects covering all three strands.

Foyer already provides housing, warmth and support to youth in jeopardy in 120 shelters across England. Now it can offer increased social services through the Well-being award. A life-coaching project will be introduced combined with healthy eating and fitness workshops in 40 centres.

Jane Slowey, Foyer Federation Chief Executive, said: “Malnourishment, alcohol, smoking and a lack of physical activity are experienced by most young people living in Foyers. Too often they are unable to access support or move towards a healthy lifestyle.   

“This investment will help transform the health and well-being of 9,000 disadvantaged young people over the next 3 years and create a sustainable legacy through a healthy Foyer network.”

Sir Clive Booth, Chair of the Big Lottery Fund, said: “Investment in healthy living and active lifestyles has become more important over the last few years, especially in the context of growing obesity levels and the increase in mental health conditions such as stress, depression and anxiety.

“The substantial size of the grants awarded shows the importance BIG places on supporting solutions to these problems throughout England.

“All the grant recipients are leaders in their respective fields and the programmes will go a long way in helping individuals and communities to improve their lifestyles.

“The funding offers a great opportunity to access preventative health services at a local level, and the projects are also part of a wider strategy to achieve a national step-change in attitudes, lifestyles and the life chances of our children.”

In both the national and regional awards, the organisations will use local knowledge and expertise in their projects, and where appropriate, engage and work with local organisations.

The programme aims to promote partnership working between organisations across sectors to increase participation and innovation and encourage a combined approach.

Well-being is part of the Big Lottery Fund’s £2.6bn UK-wide portfolio of programmes which are running till 2009. Regularly updated information on the Big Lottery Fund’s new programmes is available at www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/publications.htm

National Award Winners:

Organisation	Project	Award
Age Concern (National Council on Ageing)	Fit as a Fiddle	£15,177,417
MIND – National Association for Mental Health	Moving People	£16,150,000
The Foyer Federation	Healthy Transitions – framework for disadvantaged young people aged 16-25	£2,521,779
Sustrans Limited	Active Travel Consortium	£19,994,808
School Food Trust	Let’s Get Cooking	£20,000,000

Regional Award Winners:

Organisation	Project	Award
London Health Commission	Well London Alliance	£9,460,000
NHS SE Coast	Chances 4 Change – Readdressing the hidden health inequalities in the South East	£5,609,580
North East Strategic Health Authority	Passionate About Health & Wellbeing	£4,050,567
North Essex Mental Health Partnership (CSIP Eastern)	Wellbeing in the East: Delivering a Healthy Active Future	£3,900,019
Peabody Trust	Active 8 London	£4,685,389
Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council	Northwest Networks For Healthy Living Partnerships	£7,043,000
West Midlands Regional Assembly	Living Well in the West Midlands	£6,793,739
Wolseley Community Economic Development Trust	A Healthier Way to Live – Wellbeing in the South West	£3,959,041
Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Health Authority	Altogether Better – Working to create better health and communities	£6,864,367

Further information

Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 020 7211 1888
Out of hours contact: 07867 500 572
Public Enquiries Line: 08454 102 030
Textphone: 08456 021 659
Full details of the Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available on the website at www.biglotteryfund.org.uk.

Notes to Editors

• The Big Lottery Fund rolls out close to £2 million in Lottery good cause money every 24 hours which together with other Lottery distributors means that across the UK most people are within a few miles of a Lottery-funded project.
• The Big Lottery Fund, the largest of the National Lottery good cause distributors, has been rolling out grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK since its inception in June 2004.
• On 1 December 2006 the Big Lottery Fund was officially established by Parliament and at the same time assumed the residual responsibilities of the dissolved National Lottery Charities Board (Community Fund) the New Opportunities Fund, and the Millennium Commission. The Fund is building on the experience and best practice of the predecessor bodies to simplify funding in those areas where they overlap and to ensure Lottery funding provides the best possible value for money.
• Since the National Lottery began in 1994, 28p from every pound spent by the public has gone to Good Causes. As a result, over £20 billion has now been raised and more than 250,000 grants given out across the arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.