Big Way Of Life

Eight play projects in Wales will receive a £7.5m cash injection to encourage more children to engage in outdoor activities, the Big Lottery Fund has announced.

The grant will come as a relief to play coordinators in Wales, following the Big Lottery Fund's admittance last month that it was going to terminate its funding for Play England at the end of the financial year.

The money will be spent on the Child's Play project, part of the Big Lottery Fund's £20m Healthy Families Programme, which hopes to tackle obesity by creating play facilities for children throughout Wales.

Healthy Families Committee vice chair Barbara Wilding said: "The latest projects benefiting from funding will meet Child Play's aims by promoting healthy and active lifestyles among children and families.

"Through Child's Play we are taking positive action to preserve the health of future generations."

Carmarthenshire Association of Voluntary Services in Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire has been awarded £999,328, which will provide mobile play facilities for 1,000 children aged 12 and under.

Carmarthenshire Association of Voluntary Services regional development coordinator Tim Moss said: "This play project will enable children and young people from the region to experience opportunities within their own communities and express themselves."

The Torfaen Voluntary Alliance will also receive funding, which it will use to develop play provision for children aged eight to 12 across Torfaen, Newport and Monmouthshire.

Torfaen Voluntary Alliance operations manager John Taylor said: "We are pleased and proud to be the recipient of a grant and look forward to improving and enhancing play provision in Monmouthshire, Newport and Torfaen. This money will make a massive difference to our project."