Q & A
Lorna Menzies PPL’s Deputy Managing Director
When was People’s Postcode Lottery (PPL) founded and how has it grown from its original concept?
In 1989 Novamedia launched the Dutch Postcode Lottery using the concept of playing with your postcode, and helping good causes at the same time. This was followed by two further lotteries in the Netherlands; the Friends Lottery in 1998 and BankGiro Lottery in 2002. In 2005 the Swedish Postcode Lottery was established, and after a successful pilot in Northern England in 2005, PPL was launched in 2008.
Do you have a mission statement that sums up PPL?
Our mission, along with our sister lotteries, is to organise lotteries to raise funds for charity organisations working for people and planet and to increase awareness of their work.
How many charities do the 13 trusts now support?
People’s Postcode Trust has supported over 1,350 projects and awarded more than £8.3m in funding. The remaining trusts, who receive funds directly from players of PPL, regularly support an incredible 53 charities with large and unrestricted funding awards.
50p from every £2 ticket goes to good causes, but how do you distribute the money to charities afterwards?
Funds awarded can range from £500 to over £500,000. Each Trust has a Board of Trustees which decides which charities or good causes receive funds according to the activities they support and how much they should receive.
Do you have a favourite memory from the past year that illustrates how the PPL has changed a charity’s fortunes?
In 2014 a project based in Glasgow called Play on Pedals was awarded £231,957 in funding from the Dream Fund on behalf of players of PPL. This project, the first of its kind in Britain, aims to get every four-yearold child in Glasgow on a bike. As someone from the West of Scotland, I get to see firsthand the positive impact this funding is having on the area. The opportunity for these children to get cycling from such a young age gives them independence, the opportunity to develop new skills and a fun way to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
If you’re a charity that is looking for funding, how do you get in touch with the PPL?
Charities can apply for project specific funding from £500 to £20,000 at postcodetrust.org.uk