Community Lottery draw celebrates first year

At a Horsham District Council Cabinet meeting on 24 September councillors will look to approve the continuation of the Horsham District Community Lottery after an extremely successful one year trial.

The Lottery was launched by the Council in September 2019 and in its first year of operation it is set to raise over £56,000 for a wide variety of the District’s voluntary and community groups.
It achieves 1800 weekly ticket sales with some 970 regular weekly players. Throughout its first year 81 local charities, volunteer groups, community groups and local good causes have registered with the lottery and have benefited from the considerable funds raised.

Everyone buying a ticket can choose which community group they want to support.  There are many different types of organisations to support, from sports clubs, school associations and amateur dramatic societies, to local environmental groups, community projects and those giving support to the vulnerable members of our community.

I am delighted that our community lottery has been so successful in its first year and that it has been so widely supported by our local community groups and residents, reflecting the real enthusiasm our residents have to help support those causes that are close to their hearts.  To raise over £56,000 is an amazing achievement.

I would still encourage more groups and players to get involved – it’s free to join, easy to sign up and every group has the potential to raise vital funds for their work. All groups involved are also given marketing support to help them reach out to their supporters in what I know are increasingly challenging times for them as a result of the current pandemic.

There is a chance to win £25,000 so I urge current players to keep playing and new players to sign up now.

Cllr Tricia Youtan, Horsham District Council’s Cabinet Member for Community and Wellbeing

Tickets cost just £1 each, with 60p in each pound going to support local good causes.

The lottery is run on behalf of Horsham District Council by external provider Gatherwell, which already runs a similar scheme for many other local councils.

Community groups wanting to enrol and those wanting to buy tickets should visit the Horsham District Community Lottery website or call: 01403 434010.