Lottery funding for Culmore Community Partnership welcomed

Martina Anderson said that the local community partnership have been working for years to highlight the lack of amenities and community infrastructure in the area, which has long been an issue.

The group received almost £500,000 from the Big Lottery Fund.

Martina Anderson said she was pleased to have support the work of CCP as they seek to address the need for the refurbishment of the old Victoria Hall and the requirement for the complete development of Culmore Country Park into a range of modern fit for purpose facilities, including a new community centre and associated sports and play provision on the site.

“Considerable work has been done on advancing these facilities but much more needs to be done by the Council, statutory agencies, and potential funders.

“Having met Culmore Partnership recently to review progress, I was excited about their commitment to their overall development ambitions and whilst on a visit to Victoria Hall.

“I could see first-hand the effort and enthusiasm that have already gone in to getting the Victoria Hall back into productive use for the area. I hope that when the general health emergency subsides, the hall can act as a base for CCP’s ongoing work. “

The MLA added: “It is at times of crisis like this that we can all see the need for having proper locally based community support in place and it is my hope that CCP will give leadership in terms of providing essential support to vulnerable people and the significant older population living in Culmore to enable everyone to get through the Covid-19 crisis successfully.

“I fully support the Four Corners Initiative and look forward to its implementation because in these uncertain times our communities need one another and need to come together in a collective and integrated way.”