The Big Lottery Fund will this month announce the first 50 communities to benefit from a £200m fund which will give residents power over funding projects.

The BIG Local funding stream sees the funder identify regions which have traditionally not received much money from BIG in recognition, according to chief executive Peter Wanless (pictured), that sometimes BIG has been compelled to fund projects with the best application, rather than those addressing the greatest need.

Communities will have up to ten years to spend the money allocated to them via BIG Local.

A trust will be established to administer the grants in the next 12 to 18 months. Other communities will be invited to make expressions of interest in being funding this month also.

Wanless told the Action Planning Charity Funding and the New Government conference in London yesterday that BIG is also looking to develop a building stream within the Reaching Communities programme to fund capital projects.

But, he said, little detail on how it will work has been threshed out. “Trying to get our heards around how to manage demand is extremely difficult,” said Wanless.