The National Lottery Community Fund
The Hummingbird Project to support Leaders with Lived Experience thanks to National Lottery funding
We are celebrating after being awarded over £56000 in National Lottery funding to put people with lived experience of mental ill-health, and their carers, in the lead to achieve greater knowledge equity with their learned and practice experience colleagues.
The new 2-year grant from the UK’s largest funder of community activity is the only one of its kind to be awarded in Northern Ireland. It will see THP facilitate, monitor, assess and evaluate the impact of bringing together lived experience groups with learned and practice experience colleagues in collaborative partnerships, to tackle some of the greatest systems, socio-economic and community challenges associated with 21st century mental wellbeing.
CEO of The Hummingbird Project, Leigh Carey said:
“We are delighted to have been recognised in this way by The National Lottery Community Fund. We have worked really hard over the last 5 years to deliver measurable, sustainable change and impact within our community and to provide a strong, independent voice for those who understand what it’s really like to live with and manage mental ill-health. Leaders with Lived Experience (LEx) provides us with a timely opportunity to explore and learn from the adverse emotional impacts of COVID-19 and Brexit, against the backdrop of an already struggling mental health service. We are looking forward to extending our work with a rich and diverse range of people from many organisations and communities. This vital work brings together the voices of those who are impacted by services and advocates for their experiences to shape and improve systems and services of the future. It is not hard to recognise that the people who use a service have an informed opinion about what may help to change it for the better.”
Leigh Carey CEO The Hummingbird Project
The grant is part of The National Lottery Community Fund’s Lived Experience Leaders programme, which is today announcing £2.5million of funding going to 49 projects across the UK. The National Lottery funding will support organisations to better embed experts by experience in all aspects of operations – including making it central to COVID-19 response, recovery and renewal – and enables the Fund and the wider sector to continue learning about how people with first-hand experience can become leaders, and how funders can support them.
Cassie Robinson, Senior Head of UK Portfolio at The National Lottery Community Fund said:
“Thanks to National Lottery players, people with lived experience will use their unique expertise to lead social change and help their communities to thrive, which is vital in the response to – and looking ahead to the recovery from – COVID-19. We know that supporting those with first-hand experience to become leaders is a key enabler for civil society to do more, help more people, and for the sector to continue to make a positive impact.”
Cassie Robinson TNL Community Fund
The Lived Experience Leadership programme was developed using learning and insights from the pilot programme and is a key part of The National Lottery Community Fund’s commitment to enabling civil society to be fit for the future. The programme is helping organisations and the social sector create opportunities for people with first-hand experience to be at the forefront of decision making.
National Lottery players raise £30 million a week for good causes. During 2020 The National Lottery Community Fund distributed over £650 million to community projects across the UK.
