New report reveals benefits of £650 million investment into community spaces over past five years

£650 million of National Lottery, Government and third-party funding has been invested in community infrastructure over the past five years
This funding has supported the voluntary and community sector to undertake 10,000 building renovations and 900 accessibility infrastructure projects
1,500 village halls and community centres have received £120 million of National Lottery funding in the past five years – that's four per local authority
The National Lottery Community Fund has helped communities acquire 600 spaces that were important to them and may otherwise have been lost in the past five years
300 community businesses received emergency funding from The National Lottery Community Fund during the pandemic.

A new report published today by The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest funder of community activity in the UK, reveals the huge difference made to people’s lives by improving the accessibility of vital community spaces.

The report, named Connections Make Communities, explores the impact of £650 million in National Lottery, Government and third-party funding awarded by The National Lottery Community Fund in the past five years*. This has seen charities and community groups improve community spaces across the UK, from village halls and community centres to community-owned leisure centres and shops.

This investment has funded almost 10,000 building renovations to make these spaces greener and more accessible and comfortable for local communities, as well as nearly 900 accessibility infrastructure projects, providing improvements like lifts and ramps, so that all members of a community can enjoy their local facilities.

While making buildings more physically accessible is essential, the funder also recognises the importance of considering a wider range of adaptations to ensure places are fully inclusive. Thanks to £100,000 of National Lottery funding, Community First has brought together more than 350 village hall committees across Herefordshire and Worcestershire, ensuring that these spaces remain at the heart of communities. In a bid to reduce isolation and loneliness, the group has created a guide for dementia friendly village halls, which includes advice on how to make the design and layout of a building welcoming for people living with dementia.

“Village halls are lifelines and can often be one of the few places people can come together and participate in activities”, says Mark Herriott, General Manager at Community First. This is why 1,500 village halls and community centres have received crucial National Lottery funding in the past five years* across England and Wales. On average, that’s four community buildings per local authority area, totalling almost £120 million.

Power to Change is the funder’s largest investment in community enterprise – a charitable trust established with a £150 million endowment in 2015 to accelerate the growth and impact of community businesses. In its first five years, over £85 million has been awarded to nearly 1,300 community businesses including shops, pubs and factories. Two thirds (67%) of this went to the 30% most deprived areas of England, making an extraordinary difference to people’s lives in neighbourhoods where community buildings are fast disappearing.

Local residents in Norwich responded to the closure of the Colman’s Mustard factory in 2018 by setting up a campaign to start Norwich Mustard, a community-led business, aiming to keep mustard production part of the city’s identity. £6,000 was raised in crowdfunding, which Power to Change matched. The community-owned enterprise now has 140 member-shareholders and prides itself on making Norwich a better place to live and work - employing those furthest from the job market and developing their skills and experience.

The report also reveals that, over the past five years*, the funder has helped communities acquire nearly 600 assets that were important to them and may otherwise have been lost, from village halls and pubs to energy stations and housing developments. To address local needs and build community resilience in the face of economic challenges, the funder gave out emergency funding to over 300 community businesses during the pandemic, so they could keep running and continue providing essential services.

Faiza Khan MBE, Director of Engagement and Insight at The National Lottery Community Fund, said: “This report highlights the impact that money invested into community assets has on people’s lives across the UK. Places like village halls, community cafés and leisure centres are at the heart of our communities and provide a focal point for people to come together, make connections and build friendships and support networks. These spaces play a vital role in helping communities to prosper and thrive and will be more important than ever as communities rebuild from the pandemic.”

The National Lottery Community Fund distributes money raised by National Lottery players, who raise £36 million** each week for good causes throughout the UK. Thanks to National Lottery players last year, it awarded over half a billion pounds (£588.2 million) of life-changing funding to communities across the UK. To find out more visit www.TNLCommunityFund.org.uk

Date published: 31 August, 2021
Region: UK-wide

Notes to Editors

Notes to Editors:

* Based on 1^st April 2016 to 31^st March 2021

** Based on 1^st April 2020 to 31^st March 2021

The full Connections Make Communities report can be found here. It also includes information on:

Scottish Land Fund - We started the Scottish Land Fund in 2001 and the programme has been running in its current form since 2012, providing Scottish Government funds to community groups to purchase land and buildings. From 2012 to 2016, we awarded £9.8 million across 52 projects, putting 83,829 acres of land into community ownership. The most recent round, from 2016 to 2020, saw 231 groups and partnerships awarded £38.9 million, with an average grant size of £168,646.
Community Asset Transfer in Wales - We ran the Community Asset Transfer programme in Wales from 2010 to 2018, helping communities to regenerate and build economic sustainability. In total, we awarded £20 million in funding to 23 full projects (between £600,000 and £1.1 million) and 15 development projects (up to £50,000).
Big Local in England - Big Local is the Fund’s single biggest endowment and the largest ever investment outside of government funding in place-based, resident-led change. Each Big Local area has until 2026 to spend £1.1 million, with residents in charge of deciding how the money is spent. Each year, across 150 areas, more than 1,600 local people are directly involved in the governance of their Big Local. Up to a third of those who join Big Local have never been involved in community volunteering in the past.
Space and Place in Northern Ireland - The Space and Place programme, operated on the Fund’s behalf by the Community Foundation for Northern Ireland, ran from 2013 to 2018. It invested £15 million to help communities develop local spaces that were underused, in order to make them more relevant and appealing to local people, with improved health and wellbeing the overall goal. In total, 9,800 people took part in activities, events or programmes run through Space and Place, with 83% reporting improved health and wellbeing.
Energy Efficient Venues in Northern Ireland – The Energy Efficient Venues programme helped 403 community organisations across Northern Ireland carry out improvements to community venues to make them more energy efficient and environmentally friendly. The programme ran from 2010 to 2012, awarding £6.9 million in grants of up to £50,000 for such upgrades as new heating systems, insulation improvements and solar panel installation.
Growing Community Assets and Community Assets in Scotland – We ran the Growing Community Assets programme in Scotland from 2006 to 2016, followed by Community Assets from 2016 to 2020. The aim of both programmes was to help communities across Scotland have greater control of their futures through development and ownership of local assets. Between them, the programmes saw an investment of £106.9 million across 219 full projects and £6.2 million in development funding.

About us

We are the largest funder of community activity in the UK – we’re proud to award money raised by National Lottery players to communities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. National Lottery players raise £36 million** each week for good causes throughout the UK. Since The National Lottery began in 1994, £43 billion has been raised for good causes which has supported over 635,000 projects, benefiting millions of people - that’s 255 projects per postcode area.

We are passionate about funding great ideas that matter to communities and make a difference to people’s lives. At the heart of everything we do is the belief that when people are in the lead, communities thrive. Thanks to the support of National Lottery players, our funding is open to everyone. We’re privileged to be able to work with the smallest of local groups right up to UK-wide charities, enabling people and communities to bring their ambitions to life.

Website │Twitter │Facebook │Instagram