One week to get 100 older people dancing!

Best Foot Forward is an ambitious county-wide dance project for older people.

The project is one of five competing in the West Country for £50k of National Lottery funding in the People’s Projects competition. Voting opened at 9am on Monday 20 March at www.thepeoplesprojects.org.uk.

The Big Lottery Fund, ITV and The National Lottery have teamed up to give the UK public the chance to decide how £3 million of National Lottery funding will make a difference in their local area. The three projects with the most public votes will receive grants of up to £50,000 to help them develop their work even further to improve the lives of people in their communities.

Dance in Devon is calling on the viewers’ support, with the public voting online to decide who wins the prize. On 20th March Dance in Devon showcased their project, Best Foot Forward on ITV West Country at 6pm. Funds will be used to deliver evidence-based dance classes for fun and falls prevention: to improve confidence, strength and balance. The project will enable 100 older people across Devon to access this weekly programme over 12 months. Participants will enjoy fun, sociable and creative sessions that offer an opportunity for expression and to be physically active. All the participants will have the opportunity to come together and celebrate their achievements in the autumn.

Dr Sue Smith, Dance in Devon Executive Director said: “This is a fabulous opportunity to expand our work for older people and to create a vibrant network of older people dancing for better health and happiness. Falls are one of the most common health problems among older people, our Best Foot Forward project aims to offer a fun and creative way to prevent falls. Dance is fun and we can do it to stay strong, safe and full of beans!”

Dawn Austwick, Big Lottery Fund Chief Executive, said: “We are proud to support 12,000 projects every year that use the knowledge and ideas of local people to strengthen communities. The People’s Projects is a chance for you to decide how National Lottery funding can benefit your local community, so make sure you have your say on who you think should win!”

The People’s Projects is an opportunity to celebrate some of the incredible projects the Big Lottery Fund has supported over the past year. With 95 shortlisted across the UK, the public can now decide which groups should win up to £50,000 develop their project further.

Voting closes at noon on Monday 3 April 2017. People can vote once per region and will need an email address to vote*. To support Best Foot Forward please visit www.thepeoplesprojects.org.uk