THREE sports projects in East Lancashire have been given a major boost with the news they are being handed a share of £1.3million of National Lottery funding.

Sporting BODIES in Pendle, Girls Up & Active in Burnley and Motivate!, which is run by Blackburn Rovers, will all get cash injections to help them tackle social problems affecting young people, families, women, and people from ethnic communities.

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Sporting BODIES, which was set up in 2005 and is run by Bodies in Motion, has received £215,000 to work with young women from ethnic communities in Pendle.

Ben Kelly from the project said: “This is a deprived area and people don’t have the facilities available to take part in regular sporting activities. This funding will help get them active.”

The Girls Up & Active programme in Burnley has been awarded £164,220 to get more women and girls active and will encourage participants to use a new mobile app so they can track their progress.

Motivate! which is run by Rovers’ Community Trust, has received £225,000 to encourage women and girls to become more active. The Community Sport Activation Fund is a £47.5m National Lottery programme supporting grassroots activity at a very local level, with over 70 per cent of all projects being new start-ups.

Since 2013, 30 projects in the North West have already received funding, helping to get over 68,000 local people active.

Sport England’s director of community sport, Mike Diaper, said: “There are many reasons why a person may remain inactive, such as lack of confidence or worries about cost.

“Each one of these projects will offer targeted help to people who live challenging lives, so that they can get active and become involved in their community.

“Sport has the power to transform communities, making them happier, safer and more united. It can also encourage individuals to unlock their potential and strengthen both their body and mind.”