A BRIDPORT group has been awarded over £9,000 as part of a grant of more than £580,000 from the Big Lottery Fund’s Awards for All programme.

A total of 70 projects around the south west have been given a boost from the scheme, which gives small grants to benefit communities and people most in need.

New activities across West Dorset will support the healthy, physical and social development of young people.

These include Bridport charity Opera Circus Ltd, a performing arts company which is awarded £9,150 to work with St Mary’s School and a housing estate in Skilling to develop community gardens in an area with ‘social disadvantages’.

The scheme aims to enhance the community environment through improving public spaces for people to socialise and grow food, working nationally and internationally on musical processes concerned with social change.

Opera Circus director Tina Ellen Lee said the charity was working with a number of other partners, including Communities Living Sustainably, Transition Town Bridport and the youth centre.

She said: “Ours is part of a growing development under the Home in Bridport project looking at local food, eating, growing, cooking projects, on a long-term basis.

“This is one of a number of grants we have received during the last 18 months to begin this.

“Anyone who wants to know more can look at the Home in Bridport website where they can see all the reports of what has been achieved so far.

“It is really nice to feel that someone thinks our project is worthy of getting a grant and reinforces how useful the work is.

“One of the things Home has tried to do is, working with various people working under its umbrella, to acknowledge that lots of people do lots of good things in Bridport and the more that people work together the more we are going to achieve.

“The more it is recognised the amount of good work that goes on the more we are all going to achieve together.”

The Dorchester-based South Dorset Association of the National Trust receives £873 to buy new public address equipment to help with talks at local churches and village halls in the county.

For funding support and advice, call 0345 4102030.