The Niamh Louise Foundation shortlisted for major award

The Niamh Louise Foundation in Dungannon has been shortlisted from 1,300 nominations and has now reached the public voting stage in this year’s National Lottery Awards, which celebrate the inspirational people and projects which do extraordinary things with the help of National Lottery funding.  There are 17 shortlisted finalists from across the UK, all of which will compete in a four-week public vote from until October 7 to be named the National Lottery Project of the Year. Winners will receive a £5,000 cash prize for their project and an iconic National Lottery Awards trophy. The Niamh Louise Foundation was set up by Catherine McBennett following the death of her 15-year-old daughter Niamh McKee by suicide. Their National Lottery-funded Empowering Young Minds programme provides a care package to support young people aged 8-25 who may be in emotional distress.Catherine McBennett said: “One of the Niamh Louise Foundation’s main projects is the National Lottery-funded Empowering Young Minds programme. It provides support to young people who have thoughts of suicide or self-harm or who have been bereaved by suicide.“We have spent the last 16 years providing a safe community space for people to share their worries and provide care for anyone in crisis with thoughts of suicide or self-harm.“We are extremely pleased to have been nominated for this award and it would be a great honour to be recognised as National Lottery Project of the Year.”Jonathan Tuchner, from the National Lottery, added: ““We are delighted to have received these outstanding nominations highlighting the excellent work that National Lottery-funded projects are doing in their local areas. In these challenging times, it is heartening to see so many people and projects dedicating their time and energy into giving something back to their communities.  "It’s thanks to National Lottery players, who raise more than £30 million each week for good causes, that brilliant projects like The Niamh Louise Foundation are able to do their incredible work and with the support of the public they could be named National Lottery Project of the Year 2022.” To vote for The Niamh Louise Foundation, please go to http://lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/awards.  Or simply use the Twitter hashtag #NLANiamhLouise.