Methilhill Community Children’s Initiative celebrates after receiving 20k of National Lottery funding to help new building activity launch.

The group, based in , Methilhill, Fife will use the money to introduce new activities and groups to reduce social isolation and improve mental health and well-being.

MCCI has been running since 2013 and is staffed by 15 members of staff supported by a volunteers team. It was founded by a group of local parents who were disappointed with the lack of resources and opportunities for their children in the local area.

The group now five days per week, attended by over 100 children per week where they can join a club or group with other children in the same age range. All activities currently take place outdoors in Methilhill Community Learning Garden.

Spending time around the firepit

The new funding from The National Lottery Community Fund, which distributes money raised by National Lottery players for good causes and is the largest community funder in the UK, will see new and exciting activities taking place in a new community centre.

The centre will be open for all of the community to use when they need it. At the same time, the group will be able to continue to provide groups, clubs, activities and essential childcare services from the Community Learning Garden.

Nichola Alexander, Project Manager, says: “We’re delighted that The National Lottery Community Fund has recognised our work in this way. Now, thanks to National Lottery players we will be able to start to plan a range of activities for all ages in the new community centre. This is important because it will give the community a central meeting space, reduce social isolation and create job opportunities.”

The National Lottery Community Fund recently launched its strategy, ‘It starts with community’, which will underpin its efforts to distribute at least £4 billion of National Lottery funding by 2030.  As part of this, the funder has four key missions, which are to support communities to come together, be environmentally sustainable, help children and young people thrive and enable people to live healthier lives.

National Lottery players raise over £30 million a week for good causes across the UK. Thanks to them, last year (2023/24) The National Lottery Community Fund awarded over half a billion pounds (£686.3 million) of life-changing funding to communities across the UK, supporting over 13,700  projects to turn their great ideas into reality. 

To find out more visit www.TNLCommunityFund.org.uk