The National Lottery's Big Lottery Fund has awarded 82 projects in England a share of £22.8 million to help communities and those most in need.

Headway in west Kent was one of many that applied for a shore of the Reach Communities programme fund and learned this week of its success.

"Heading up and Heading out" will be the focus of this Tunbridge Wells-based charity's development over the next two years.

Service manager at Headway in Culverden Park, Lisa Rye said: “We are delighted to have been successful in being awarded this money for our new and exciting project.

"The application process was rigorous and therefore we feel privileged to have the opportunity to deliver our much needed services to those in the community setting.

"The project will take the form of a Buddy Service, where we will visit adults with an acquired brain injury within their homes supporting them to achieve whatever their goals may be.

"The application process was rigorous and therefore we feel privileged to have the opportunity to deliver our much needed services to those in the community setting" - Lisa Rye

"This may be helping with paperwork, providing moral support at a new club, assisting with work finding and many other activities.

"The second part of this project will see two ‘Drop in’ facilities open in Maidstone and Edenbridge. Here, anyone living with acquired brain injury will be able to access guidance and information from accessible venues with the confidence of knowing that this will be delivered by people who are from a trusted organisation.

Our aim is to utilise the partner organisations we already have links with. Brain injury can happen to anyone at any time and you often cannot see that someone may have experienced an injury to the brain."

Headway's service not only support the person with the injury but the family and carers too.

For more info call 01892 619001 or email info@headwaywkent.org