A NEIGHBOURHOOD project that benefited from a grant of nearly £300,000 has urged community groups to apply for funding made available by the Lancashire Telegraph and the Big Lottery Fund.

The Community Cash Awards were launched on Monday, giving community organisations the chance to bid for lottery grants of £10,000 to £30,000.

The Lancashire Telegraph has teamed up with the Big Lottery Fund to give out £250,000 to causes across the newspaper’s readership area.

Scaitcliffe Community Centre in Accrington was awarded nearly £300,000 of lottery funding in 2010, to provide a safe place for people to access the internet, meeting rooms, help with benefits and finance and information on courses and training, Mohammed Abid, neighbourhood manager for the project, said: “People should get involved and go for it. The Big Lottery Fund has been one of the main sources of funding for the community. It has been a real help.”

The scheme has also been backed by Blackburn MP Jack Straw and Pendle MP Andrew Stephenson.

Whether you are looking to run classes to get people more physically active, turn a derelict site into a community garden, set up after-school cooking clubs, organise tea dances for isolated older people, train young people to become more employable or help your community get online, this funding can make the difference.

You do not need to be a registered charity to apply for a grant, but you will otherwise need to be a community group, not-for-profit group, parish or town council, health body or school. Groups must have a bank account that requires at least two people to sign each cheque or withdrawal and you must be in a position to use the grant within a year.

The project also needs to be working within the readership area of the Lancashire Telegraph, East Lancashire.

The application form is straightforward and needs to be submitted by Sunday, July 21. Forms are available from Community Foundation for Lancashire at the website lancsfoundation.org.uk or call 0151 232 2444 to get a paper copy.

A shortlist of the best ideas will be revealed in the Lancashire Telegraph in September, with readers given the chance to vote for the projects they would most like to see get the cash. The winners will finally be announced the week of September 30.