Derbyshire Wildlife Trust gets £157,000 lottery lifeline to manage COVID-19 impact and restart vital work

The emergency grant is intended to help the trust reopen reserves, develop new safety measures for the popular volunteer programme, and switch more activities online to help people stay in touch with wildlife.

Trust chief executive Jo Smith said: “This National Lottery Heritage Fund grant is a very welcome game-changer for us and a significant lifeline during a worrying and challenging time.

"It will make a huge difference to the organisation and secure its future so we can get back to business – saving and improving the fortunes of Derbyshire’s wild places and green spaces for wildlife and all the people who enjoy and depend on them for so many reasons.”

The charity is largely reliant on membership fees and donations but, when the first national lockdown was introduced in March, it immediately lost much of additional key sources of income and many of its vital projects were put on hold.

Visitor centres including the newly refurbished Whistlestop Café at Matlock Bath closed overnight, most staff were furloughed and events were cancelled.

Where nature reserves remained open, lower levels of staffing combined with the warmer weather meant that some reserves suffered from antisocial behaviour such as littering and vandalism.

The charity is one among many third sector organisations across the UK which have been affected by the unprecedented impact of the coronavirus outbreak and are now being given access to a £600million package of repurposed lottery money.

The money is being allocated to support vulnerable people, the arts, community, charity, heritage, education, the environment and sports.

Ros Kerslake, chief executive of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players we are pleased to be able to lend our support to organisations such as Derbyshire Wildlife Trust during this uncertain time.

"We are making communities better places to live, supporting economic regeneration and benefiting personal wellbeing. These things will be even more important as we emerge from this crisis.”