Member Article

People's Postcode Lottery celebrates "an awfully good" year with Liverpool Charity

People’s Postcode Lottery celebrated a year of support for Liverpool-based charity, The Reader, with a special Shared Reading event.

Hosted in the library of the city’s iconic 18th century Athenaeum, 60 people gathered to recognise the impact that more than £1million of support has had on the Liverpool community. Attendees included the charity’s volunteers, service users and local winners of People’s Postcode Lottery.

The Reader is the original developer of Shared Reading – a powerful group experience that helps people around the world to live well in their own communities.

By creating space for people of all backgrounds and life situations to explore their inner lives and develop meaningful relationships with others through great literature, Shared Reading improves wellbeing, reduces social isolation and builds stronger communities.

In 2018, People’s Postcode Lottery supported more than 500 Shared Reading groups across the UK – including more than 100 groups in the Liverpool City Region – and impacted the lives of over 12,000 group members and volunteers.

People’s Postcode Lottery ambassador and TV presenter, Fiona Phillips, opened the event before The Reader’s patron, BAFTA nominated actor Claire Skinner (Outnumbered), read from “An Awfully Big Adventure.” The Booker Prize short-listed novel by acclaimed Liverpool author, the late Dame Beryl Bainbridge, was chosen as 2019 marks 30 years since it was first published.

A minimum of 32% from each People’s Postcode Lottery players’ subscription goes directly to charities and good causes. This event gave some of the winners the chance to see first-hand the positive impact playing has had on their local community. This included Peter Caldwell and Nikki Pinchilingi from Widnes who won £30,000 last August, and Wendy Sweeney from Ellesmere Port who scooped £30,000 just last month.

To date, People’s Postcode Lottery has awarded more than £1million to The Reader through The Postcode Care Trust. The Reader is just one of the 6,500 charities People’s Postcode Lottery has supported across the UK, to date raising £450 million for good causes.

Fiona Phillips, People’s Postcode Lottery ambassador, said: “As a journalist, storytelling has always been a big part of my life and I really admire The Reader’s efforts to bring the joy of books to a wider audience. The charity’s Shared Reading movement is helping to enrich lives across the country. I’m pleased that players of People’s Postcode Lottery are part of The Reader’s story by raising more than £1 million to support their work.”

Jemma Guerrier, director of development and communications, The Reader, said: “Being part of the People’s Postcode Lottery family is helping us to reach more people with our Reading Revolution, and to make a difference to more lives.

Thanks to support from players, there are now more volunteers leading Shared Reading groups in towns and cities throughout GB. While at our home in Calderstones Park, funding is helping to ensure that there’ll be a fantastic range of volunteering opportunities and meaningful activities for local people to engage with at The Reader Mansion House when the doors open in September.“

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Elle Spencer .