Let's get cooking... Derry's Foyle Down Syndrome Trust scoops £49.7k as People's Project winner

A Derry charity has scooped almost £50,000 as one of the winners of the People;s Project.

Members of Foyle Down Sydrome Trust are celebrating after winning £49,710 following a public vote.

The Big Lottery Fund teamed up with ITV and The National Lottery to give the Northern Ireland public the chance to decide how £150,000 of funding could make a difference in their local area.

In Northern Ireland, five projects were shortlisted for National Lottery funding to develop their work to improve the lives of people in their communities.

The projects – which have all featured on UTV’s evening news programme – campaigned to the public for votes over a two week period.

The three projects with the most votes have been awarded a grant.

One of the winners is the Recipe for Success project by Foyle Down Syndrome Trust who will use the prizemoney to work with 20 young people aged 16-30 with learning disabilities to deliver a 36 week cookery course and other activities.

The course will include food hygiene, catering and menu planning and budgeting leading to NVQ qualifications. T

he young people will also visit a number of cookery schools across Northern Ireland.

Lorraine Gallen, manager of Foyle Down Syndrome Trust, said they were “overwhelmed” to have won.

She added: “We are so happy for our young people – this is the project they asked for and so deserve.

“It was made possible by the whole community getting behind us and there are so many people to thank for making this happen.

“This project will provide vital life skills for our young people, and will make such a difference to the families we support. The whole of Foyle Down Syndrome Trust feel like we’re winners today.”

The other winners are the Our World project by MAC (NI) in Rostrevor, Co Down and the New Multi-Sensory Equipment project by Northern Ireland Children's Hospice in Newtownabbey, Co Antrim.