Inverclyde Shed shortlisted for £70,000 National Lottery grant funding

Inverclyde Shed is one of 15 groups across Scotland shortlisted for National Lottery money through The People's Projects initiative.

The cash would be used for the shed's Meet, Make, Grow and Share project to 'deliver opportunities for people facing social isolation in Scotland’s most deprived area to find hope, re-skill and build genuine friendships over a cuppa and through shared practical activities in our community shed'.

The local group's objectives are to 'reduce waste, maintain repair skills and strengthen social cohesion' and members undertake repairs free of charge for people in the community with activities including furniture making, boatbuilding, welding, gardening and woodland crafts.

All shortlisted groups will have the opportunity to showcase their work as they go head-to-head in a public vote which opened today.

The three projects with the most public votes will receive grants of up to £70,000, while runners-up will be offered up to £10,000 towards their project, bringing the total funding up for grabs to £760,000.

Kate Still, Scotland chair of The National Lottery Community Fund, said: “Thanks to National Lottery players, The People’s Projects is a fantastic initiative that showcases the incredible efforts of truly inspirational and hard-working groups, each delivering life-changing support to help their community thrive.

"We encourage the public to vote and have their say in how much-needed funding is used to make a difference to so many lives across Scotland.”

Since it started in 2005, The People’s Projects has awarded around £45 million to more than 1,000 good causes.

Voting opened at 9am today and closes at noon next Friday, May 26.

People can vote only once per region and will need an email address or mobile number to vote.

Visit thepeoplesprojects.org.uk to vote, read the terms and conditions and see a full list of projects involved across the UK.