NEW figures released by the National Lottery revealed charities and good causes in Halesowen and Rowley Regis received £821,000 in 2016.

14 Lottery grants were given out a providing a vital boost to arts, sports and heritage projects alongside community groups helping those most in need.

The biggest winners were Halesowen youth charity The Phase Trust which clinched £334,236.

The Little Cornbow organisation will use the funding for two new universal youth clubs for vulnerable and disadvantaged young people aged between 19 to 25.

The clubs will provide a safe and secure environment, and will host a variety of activities around creative arts, music, sports and sports coaching. Halesowen charity Loaves n Fishes, which provide household goods and necessities to the needy, received a windfall of £312,542.

The charity's founder Anna Hartland, who started distributing goods from her Cradley Heath shed 11 years ago and now has a depot in Vicarage Road, said: "We are more than blessed to receive this funding.

"As poverty levels rise, the greater the need for this charity. In the last year alone, we have supported 1,973 people."

She added: "This funding will enable us to pay for staff wages and other costs needed over the next three years and we aim to build on our workshop enterprise enabling us to become much more self efficient."

Other grants included £9,500 to Leaps and Bounds Trust in Halesowen t to run a personal development programme for young people and £9,074 to Brickhouse Regis Residents Association to install outdoor fitness equipment.

Highfields Primary School was given £10,000 to resurface the school's play area, install new play equipment, and install a disabled access ramp.

Caslon Primary School also got £10,000 and will develop an unused area of the school to create a global learning lounge to encourage greater understanding of global issues and encourage beneficiaries to learn about different cultures.

Bangladeshi Development Group in Halesowen scooped £9,175 for a summer holiday club for children from low or no income families.

Other good causes to receive cash were the Friends of Highfields, Agewell, Blackheath PFA, Hasbury pre-school and the West Midlands Readers Network and Cradley Heath Creative.

All the Halesowen and Rowley Regis projects can enter The National Lottery Awards 2017 – the annual search for the UK’s favourite Lottery-funded projects.

National Lottery Awards winners will receive a £3,000 cash prize and attend the awards on BBC1 later this year.

John Barrowman MBE, presenter of the National Lottery Awards show, said: “The National Lottery Awards are a fabulous celebration of the UK’s favourite Lottery-funded projects as voted for by the public.

"The Awards rightly put the focus on ordinary people doing extraordinary things with National Lottery funding, whose efforts go such a long way and are indeed changing lives. National Lottery players can be very proud to have contributed towards their fine work.”

Nominate your favourite project in this year’s National Lottery Awards, tweet @LottoGoodCauses or call 0207 293 3399.