[cma-l] Village SOS: BIG and BBC join forces to inspire UK rural revival

[CMA-L]

A new Big Lottery Fund (BIG) scheme to help six rural villages across
the UK to regenerate their communities through new business ventures
is launching today in partnership with BBC One.

The search is also on for six enterprising and visionary individuals
to become ‘Village Champions’ and work with the villages to help
achieve their ambitions of starting a successful rural business. BBC
One will be documenting the journey of the six villages and their
Village Champions for a major prime time series in winter 2010.

Village SOS will challenge villages to come up with brilliant ideas
for new businesses to help revive their communities, many of which are
seeing rural life eroded by economic pressures and the closure of
local amenities.

Village SOS will invite rural communities with lots of enthusiasm and
a great business idea -from retailing to manufacturing, the arts to
leisure - to apply for Lottery funding to help breathe new life into
their area, create new jobs and improve the quality of life for local
people.

Eighteen villages will be shortlisted to receive a development grant
of up to £10,000, and will choose a ‘Village Champion’ to work with to
advance their ideas. In May 2010 six projects will be awarded Lottery
funding of up to £400,000 and their respective Village Champions will
move into the villages for a year to help them turn their business
idea into a reality.

BBC Wales will follow the stories of the six new rural enterprises
from start up to trading for a major BBC One series in Winter 2010.
The six-part series promises to be gripping entertainment for viewers
as they follow the ups and downs as the Champion moves into their
chosen village, and starts work on the business

The Village Champions will be recruited through a nationwide search
run by the BBC and Make Your Mark, part of the charity Enterprise
Insight. Champions could be anyone with a successful track record in
business - banker, baker or builder - as long as they have the drive
and charisma to launch a new venture, and the desire to live and work
in a rural village for a year.

The BIG scheme aims to fund three awards in England and one each in
Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales in villages with a population of
up to 3,000.

More here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/villagesos/

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