HOLLYWOOD STAR KICKS OFF NATIONAL LOTTERY AWARDS VOTING
27th Mehefin 2018
Film star Michael Sheen has literally got the ball rolling for the National Lottery Awards – the annual search for the public’s favourite National Lottery-funded projects.
Over 700 projects from organisations throughout the UK entered into this year’s National Lottery Awards and the final 49 are now up for the public voting stage. The National Lottery Awards celebrate the inspirational people and projects who do extraordinary things with National Lottery funding.
Michael Sheen, the star of blockbuster films such as the Twilight saga, Underworld, The Queen and Frost/Nixon, has today got behind the National Lottery projects to officially kick off the public voting period.
Yesterday, he travelled to the Gôl 5-a-side and 7-a-side Football Centre in Cardiff, and met up with some of the women who have had positive life changing experiences through Street Football Wales’s Kick Some Balls project. The project received £198,875 of National Lottery-funding through Sport Wales and is one of the seven contenders in the UK hoping to be named the Best Sports Project at this year’s Awards. Kick Some Balls harnesses the power of sport and has worked with more than 750 homeless, vulnerable and marginalised women to boost their fitness, well-being and social skills.
During the event, football mad Michael Sheen met with 37 year old mum-of-three, Dee, who shared the positive experience she’s had through Kick Some Balls. Dee experienced significant trauma throughout her childhood, resulting in an adulthood blighted by violence, addiction and offending behaviour. A turning point came when she was selected for Wales’ Women’s Warriors National Team for the 2017 Homeless World Cup. The sport has helped Dee develop more effective ways of communicating and expressing herself and has helped her address her own addictions and issues.
Throwing his support behind the incredible community projects up for the public vote, film star Michael Sheen, who grew up in Port Talbot, says: “I am immensely proud of the incredible work these National Lottery funded projects deliver day in and day out in our communities throughout the UK.
Their truly life-changing work is only made possible through the amazing dedication of all the staff and volunteers who run them. My message is simple - these extraordinary finalists need your support, so please get voting!”
There are seven projects competing for votes across seven categories, reflecting the main areas of National Lottery funding: arts, education, environment, health, heritage, sport and voluntary/charity.
The winners of the seven National Lottery Awards will each get a £5,000 cash prize to spend on their project, an iconic National Lottery Awards trophy and attend a star-studded glitzy awards ceremony to be broadcast on BBC One on 26 September 2018.
To vote go to lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/awards. You can also follow the campaign on Twitter: hashtag #NLAwards. Voting runs from 9am on 27 June until midnight on 27 July.
Ends
For further information please contact The National Lottery Awards:
Oswyn Hughes, oswyn.hughes@lotterygoodcauses.org.uk; 0292 067 8278/ 07976 324179
Nodiadau i olygyddion
Notes to Editors
- Telephone voting calls cost 5p max. A connection charge may be applied by some networks. Please check with your provider.
- All voting will be independently adjudicated and verified by Electoral Reform Services.
- Thanks to National Lottery players, £30 million is raised each week for good causes in the UK
- There are seven projects competing for votes across seven categories, reflecting the main areas of National Lottery funding: arts, education, environment, health, heritage, sport and voluntary/charity.