THREE community groups from the Tavistock area are celebrating after being awarded substantial funds from the Big Lottery Fund.

On Tuesday (June 5) it was announced that Tavistock Area Support Services, Lamerton Village Hall and Milton Combe Village Hall were to receive funds ranging from £8,855 to £10,000.

A total of 60 Devon community organisations are being awarded a total of just over £725,000 in National Lottery funding for the quarter — the money raised by players for good causes will be distributed by the Big Lottery Fund.

Tavistock Area Support Services (TASS) received a boost of £10,000 for its TASS Champions project. The project will see volunteers matched with people who have come forward because they are lonely and will help them to get out and about in the community, meet new friends and become more socially active. The project will run alongside the existing Befriending service, which matches volunteers to befriend isolated and lonely people who cannot get out so easily.

TASS manager Diane Newman said: ‘Champion volunteers are matched with people who have lost confidence following a life-changing event. The aim is to build confidence, reintroduce people to activities and help them to establish new friendships and build support networks, getting them back to independence and keeping them active. It is envisaged that this will reduce dependency on statutory services.

‘We already run the Befriending service which is very popular and there is a waiting list but we haven’t been good at sitting people down and asking them what they can and can’t do. We know that if people are out and about in their community their health can improve or be maintained. So we will match people with a champion who will work with them to identify their goals and help them to achieve them.’

The new project is in need of volunteers but Diane said it would mainly be short-term commitments just to get people back on their feet. Anyone who would like to be part of the project, either to use the service or to volunteer, can contact TASS on 01822 616958.

Receiving £8,855.10 for outdoor equipment was Milton Combe Village Hall.

Milton Combe parish councillor and chairman of the village hall Val Bolitho said that the award would add versatility to the outside area of the hall: ‘We hope to put in a new path, install a bird’s nest swing and we have just installed new picnic benches, in order to be versatile for all users.

‘Everyone was delighted when they heard the news we were to receive the award. We met with parents and children to discuss what they wanted in the outside space — we have involved everyone from the area.’

Lamerton Village Hall, which received funding of £10,000, also used the money to install play equipment.

Along with £15,000 from its own fundraising, funding from the parish council and a number of other small grants from various organisations, Lamerton Village Hall committee has almost finished refurbishing its outside play area with equipment including a double swing, a nest swing and a climbing wall.

Chair of the village hall committee Ian Minshull said: ‘Most of it has already been installed with the last piece of equipment due to be installed this week. It’s looking really good! This is part of a three-phase refurbishing plan. We did some bits inside the hall — a sound system and new stage etc — and now we’re concentrating on the outside. The outside hasn’t been touched since the hall was built around 10 years ago.

‘We’ve been fundraising for a number of years for this and we still need money for the third phase.’

The third phase will see the installation of outside equipment for older children such as the building of covered areas and netball and football goals.

James Harcourt, England grant-making director at the Big Lottery Fund, said: ‘Whether in a village, town or city, National Lottery funding is helping to make a difference, bringing communities together to help people lead happier and healthier lives.’

The South West, as a whole, is to receive £4.6-million, which is being distributed across 249 community projects and organisations.

The Big Lottery Fund is responsible for giving out money raised by National Lottery players for good causes. Last year it awarded almost £713-million and supported almost 14,000 projects across the UK for health, education, environment and charitable purposes.