National Lottery Pledges to Spend Money in Coronavirus Fight
Last Updated: Wednesday 23rd September 2020, 16:08
The National Lottery will donate up to £300 million to help local charities ease the pressures on their communities during the coronavirus outbreak. It marks a shift in focus from the way that funding normally works to ensure that the most vulnerable people will be supported when they need it most.
Around £30 million is raised by National Lottery players every week, with £0.28 from every £1 spent on tickets going towards a range of good causes. These include worthy projects in the fields of sport, art, heritage and health, education and charitable causes.
In these extraordinary times, though, the National Lottery will be flexible with its funding and will prioritise those organisations which are concentrating on helping people get through the Covid-19 crisis.
The virus has put a huge strain on people’s everyday lives and the money from the lottery will help to support food banks, the elderly, health in the community and causes that combat loneliness and isolation.
Dawn Austwick, chief executive of the National Lottery Community Fund leading the initiative to help these projects, said: “The Fund has always supported projects that help people and communities across the UK thrive.
"And now, the Fund is switching its focus for the foreseeable future on supporting charities seeking to mitigate the unprecedented pressure communities are coming under as the country rallies to overcome the virus.”
Playing Online Is The Safest Way
Nigel Railton, chief executive of National Lottery operator Camelot, thanked players for doing their bit to support good causes by buying tickets. He said: “Week in, week out, National Lottery players make a huge difference to the lives of people and communities across the UK. Just by buying a ticket, players in every nation have helped raise over £40 billion for good cause projects, from supporting our athletes to repairing scout huts.
“Now, more than ever, The National Lottery can play a critical role in supporting our communities as we all face this challenge together. Up to £300 million raised by National Lottery players will be helping to fund vital work in local communities at a time when it’s needed the most.”
Lottery tickets remain on sale from retailers but players have been reminded that it is far safer to take part online at the current time. You will also be alerted automatically if you win a prize as your entry is stored digitally so that you do not have to check the results.
If you win a prize online, the money will be paid straight into your account or - for larger amounts - you will be contacted about how to proceed. For players who have bought tickets from retailers, there has been a high volume of postal claims in the last few weeks due to the pandemic and it may take longer for these claims to be processed than usual.
Draws will continue as scheduled during the crisis and you can check the latest results as soon as they are available on National-Lottery.com.