A PROJECT to help recovering cancer sufferers and plans to help a school wildlife garden are just two of the schemes to be given a share £387,457 of Big Lottery funding.

Across the North-East 44 projects benefitted from the Awards for All small grants programme.

Among them are the Great Aycliffe Cancer Support Scheme and St Mary’s Primary School, Barnard Castle, in County Durham.

The Aycliffe cancer group, set up by leukaemia sufferer Allison White, 38, last year secured £2,605.

Miss White, chairman of the group, said: “We only set the group up last year and I’m really pleased and happy to have gained the money.

“It’s mainly for activities like trips away as many cancer sufferers lose confidence about going out and some of them live alone.

“People worry about cancer coming back even if they managed to get rid of it ten-years ago. We look after the carers of cancer sufferers too.”

The group meets at the Neville Parade Community Centre, in Newton Aycliffe, on the first Thursday of each month between 6pm and 7.30pm.

Meanwhile, staff and pupils at St Mary’s Primary School are celebrating after they received £9,949 to create a wildlife garden with work due to start next month.

Headteacher Jane Weatherall said: “We’re absolutely thrilled. I thought we’d get part of the funding but not all of it.

“It’s for the St Mary’s Goes Wild project and it will be great for us as it means we can hold more lessons outside which the children love.

“The land used to have a pond on it but its overgrown now and we intend to build things such as a bird hide for children to watch animals and birds from.”

Since the National Lottery began in 1994 good causes have benefitted from £33bn of funding with more than 450,000 grants awarded.

Lyn Cole, Big Lottery Fund deputy director England, said: “The awards demonstrate how people are leading the way in their local communities by creating great ways of making a difference in the heart of our communities using National Lottery funding.”

In Newton Aycliffe Real Lives, Real Choices received £9,606; St Mary’s Primary School £5,791 and the Acorn Residents Association, £9,465.

Durham University Student Community Action was granted £5,438; Stanley Burnside Primary School, £9,295; Changing Relations, Durham, £10,000 and Seaham Have Your Say got £4,585.

In Stockton Hearts of the Hub got £9,717; Young People Support Group got £9,360 and High Grange Community Association got £6,909.