Yesterday athlete and commentator Colin Jackson launched the Welsh leg of The National Lottery’s Britain has Balls tour which is celebrating the great things ballsy Welsh people do with Lottery funding to support talent, charities and communities up and down the country.
Lottery funded projects joined Colin in Cardiff’s Queen Street. Street dancers from Urban Circle; drummers from Valleys Kids; lifeguards from Aberavon Surf Lifesaving Club and members of the Construction Youth Trust challenged him to try his hand at the activities they also demonstrated to the public.
Over this week The National Lottery’s Britain Has Balls Tour is visiting some of the projects in Wales that have benefited from the 27,000 Lottery grants given out over the past 15 years. Every week Lottery players raise £25 million for good causes and thousands of people across Wales have been using Lottery funding, plus a huge amount of hard work and dedication, to make a big difference to people and places in their communities.
Colin Jackson explains, “Meeting the projects here today has been fantastic. I’m really proud of the people of Wales for making such good use of the Lottery funding they’ve received. In particular I’m impressed by the amount of projects which support disadvantaged kids and give them a focus, which is so important.”
Luke Belmont, now 21, is one of thousands of young people who has benefited from Lottery funded projects. Luke has been attending Construction Youth Trust courses in Newport for the last 18 months to learn the carpentry and construction skills which led to him getting a job with the Penrhys Partnership: “Before I took part in the Carpentry OCN with the Construction Youth Trust, I had no qualifications and was not interested in learning. I spent all my time hanging out with friends and playing computer games. On the course I learnt loads of new skills and it really helped build my self-confidence and sparked an appetite for learning.
“After taking part in a few other taster courses in plastering, tiling etc. I was encouraged to volunteer, which then led to a job and I am enjoying putting my skills to use. It’s just the start of my working life and I would like to thank Lottery players and Construction Youth Trust for all the help and support they have given me, without which I would still probably be unemployed.”
Over £1 billion of Lottery funding has been given to arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and environment projects in Wales since the Lottery began in 1994. To find out more, visit www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk
