National Lottery Community Fund

Hurrah! 

 

The funding will ensure we can continue to hold our amazing workshops (even though we say so ourselves!) until 2029 … now that sounds a long way away, but as we know, time goes very fast, particularly in the Futureworks NY universe! 

 

We are also super-excited that we have just celebrated its 14th birthday as an organisation. 

 

 

One of our co-founders, Sarah, said: “We are very excited to share that The National Lottery Community Fund has funded our workshop project for a further three years. 

 

“This means we can continue offering our workshop programme to the community, where clients build friendships, gain hands on skills using tools, and grow in confidence while upcycling furniture and saving it from landfill. 

“Every piece restored goes on to a new life in our Furniture Works shop, creating impact for both people and the planet.” 

 

There are some facts, though, about the National Lottery Community Fund which we feel everyone should know, as it will help show how the funding helps people to improve their lives in the Scarborough area. 

 

When a charity receives funding, it can be either unrestricted or restricted funding … which means a charity can either use it for anything they need (unrestricted), or the funding is ‘proscribed’ (restricted) and is allocated to support a certain part of the charity’s work. 

 

For Futureworks NY, the NLCF is restricted, which means it can only be used for particular elements of our work. 

 

For us, the NLCF is used in part for our important workshops programme, which are now held at our Victoria Road premises. 

 

These include Women in the Workshop and others … 

 

Michelle, co-founder of Futureworks NY, said: “Our Women in the workshop courses run as 10 week blocks, while other workshop activities run as a rolling programme, so people can apply anytime to take part. 

 

“The workshops offer participants the chance to learn new skills, gain confidence, meet new people and feel an overall sense of wellbeing in a safe environment. 

 

“The NLCF outlines its funding strategy on its website, including social connection and community activities. 

 

“Our funding application outlined that we have worked, and will continue to work with vulnerable and disengaged individuals in the local community, providing holistic support and a chance to develop life skills, acquire qualifications, and experience new activities that will give them even more confidence. 

 

“We measure our ‘success’ very closely, so we can keep tabs on the overall success of our projects. 

 

“We are so proud that we have been able to secure the funding for the next three years, which means we can help more people in the years to come.” 

 

We would like to thank everyone who also supported our passionate, dedicated team in 2025, as so far, since we started 14 years ago, we’ve helped 2,000 individuals to believe in themselves and achieve their full potential. 

 

 

Thanks to the NLCF funding, most learner-clients will experience an increased sense of health and wellbeing, a reduced sense of isolation, and the majority will have improved interpersonal skills. 

 

Add to this our dedication to looking after Planet Earth: our workshops and our retail premises will continue to repair, reuse and refurbish furniture that would otherwise end up in landfill. 

 

So don’t forget, we also have our fabulous Furniture Works shop in St Thomas Street, Scarborough. 

 

Our stunning showroom is a fabulous shopping experience, showcasing upcycled, preloved furniture, lovingly restored by our learner-clients. 

 

Look at our recent mini blogs to see how busy we’ve been! 

 

If you are interested in either donating furniture or funds, you can find out more here. 

 

You can also fill out our referral form, which is easy to do, via our website.