New programmes and activity from The National Lottery Community Fund, National Lottery Heritage Fund, Arts Council England, Sport England and the BFI, made possible by over £22million of National Lottery funding, will support communities in Preston and across the country to bring people together to celebrate Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June 2022.
The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest funder of community activity in the UK, will today launch the £3.5million Platinum Jubilee Fund, which will provide grants of up to £50,000 to 70 impactful community projects across the UK, celebrating Her Majesty’s 70 years of public service.
In addition to The Platinum Jubilee Fund, grants of up to £10,000 from The National Lottery Awards For All programme – which gives out almost £80million of National Lottery funding in all parts of the UK each year - will be available for community-led events throughout 2022.
The Platinum Jubilee weekend will also be celebrated with The Big Jubilee Lunch from 2-5 June 2022. Part of a 2-year programme of activities supported by £2.3million of National Lottery funding, this Jubilee-focused version of the annual Big Lunch event will bring thousands of communities together and help people celebrate the Jubilee while getting to know their neighbours.
Arts Council England is launching the Let’s Create Jubilee Fund, a £5million programme that will support voluntary and community organisations in England to develop creative and cultural activities as part of the Platinum Jubilee celebrations with grants of up to £10,000.
The fund will be administered by UK Community Foundations, and applicants will be encouraged to partner with established artists, creatives and cultural organisations to develop their activities, ensuring that the Jubilee celebrations become an opportunity for communities throughout England to enjoy the best of the country’s culture and creativity, as well as celebrating an important milestone in our national history.
Throughout the year community organisations will also be able to apply for grants from the Arts Council’s £98.75million National Lottery Project Grants programme, which has been refreshed with new guidance to better support a broader range of ambitious cultural projects.
To mark the Jubilee year, The National Lottery Heritage Fund will invest £5million in supporting communities across the UK to re-connect with the nature on their doorstep. From wilding verges and sowing meadows, to digging ponds and creating highways for nature, communities will be encouraged to take action to help natural green spaces flourish as a legacy of the Platinum Jubilee. An additional £2million funding will create 70 paid placements for young people from under-served and disadvantaged backgrounds. These employment opportunities will provide the skills, experience and practical qualifications for those looking to enter a career in wildlife and nature.
Sport England will commit up to £5million towards a Queen's Platinum Jubilee Activity Fund, which will open at the beginning of 2022 and focus on the role of sport and physical activity in tackling inequalities and building stronger communities.
The BFI is launching a Royal Jubilee themed BFI Player collection in 2022. Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee will be watched by countless millions across the world, and this collection of archival films will show how royal Jubilees have been celebrated and captured on film and television since the earliest days of the moving image. From Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897, which brought the nascent film industry to London, via George V's Silver Jubilee, captured by a new generation of amateur cine-enthusiasts, to Her Majesty The Queen’s Silver Jubilee, televised for hundreds of millions worldwide.
The films, drawn from the collections of the BFI National Archive and regional and national archives across the UK, have mostly been digitised with the support of the National Lottery, and will be made available for free on BFI Player.
Sir Mark Hendrick MP said: "I hope community and voluntary groups in Preston will take up these opportunities to apply for funding to help celebrate the Queen's Platinum Jubilee next year. Her Majesty has given 70 years of faithful service and considering that she marked her Golden Jubilee by granting Preston city status in 2002 - England's 50th city in the 50th year of her reign - it is only right that we mark this occasion with a range of activities and celebrations that can be enjoyed by all."
Darren Henley, Chief Executive at Arts Council England said “We’re giving people across the country the chance to come together to experience the joy of culture and creativity in celebration of this historic milestone. With Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee taking place alongside the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games Festival and the Unboxed festival of UK creativity, next year is set to be a magnificent celebration of our nation’s artistic achievements.”
The National Lottery Community Fund’s Platinum Jubilee Fund opens to applications at 12noon on Wednesday 17th November. For more information, visit The National Lottery Community Fund’s website.
The Arts Council will publish more detail on how to apply for the Let’s Create Platinum Jubilee Fund in December. Find out more here.
Sport England will announce further details on The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Activity Fund in due course.