Happy birthday National Lottery

Eighteen years ago the first National Lottery Draw Show was held and nearly two decades later the Lottery is still changing people’s lives across the country.

Sport England has received funding from the National Lottery since it launched and in the 18 years since Mystic Meg first graced our screens this money has allowed us to invest in tens of thousands of sports projects in England.

From Sunday league footballers in Portsmouth to aspiring Olympic rowers in Durham, countless people have benefited from the hundreds of millions of pounds of Lottery funding that has been invested into community sport.

One project that received financial support from the National Lottery is Westway Sports Centre, a multi-sport centre located in a deprived area of London. In 1997 an £8.77million Lottery grant from Sport England enabled them to build an array of new facilities including an indoor climbing wall, six football pitches and tennis centre.

Funding from the National Lottery has also allowed us to ensure that the general public are able to use elite facilities such as the National Cycling Centre in Manchester where athletes like Chris Hoy and Laura Trott train, and several of the London 2012 venues which will open to the public over the next few years.

As well as helping to build new sports facilities and improve existing ones, Lottery funding has also allowed us to create more opportunities for people to try sport through programmes such as Sportivate which introduced over 80,000 young people to a new sport in its first year.

So, on behalf of all of the clubs and community sports people across England who have benefited from National Lottery funding, we wish the National Lottery a very happy 18^th birthday.

To find out more about the good causes that are supported by the National Lottery visit their website.

Join us in wishing @TNLUK and @lottogoodcauses a happy birthday on Monday by tweeting at them using the hashtag #18thbirthday.