A COMMUNITY garden and a cricket pavilion refurbishment are among the Chester-le-Street projects sharing £28,000.

More than 1,000 Chester-le-Street residents attended Chester-le-Street and District Area Action Partnership’s (AAP) It’s Up 2 U event and voted to fund 11 of the 22 local groups that applied.

The suicide support group If U Care Share will get £2,949 and 1st Burnmoor Scouts will get £3,000 for their community garden, as will Lumley Football’s volunteer coaching programme.

Awards of £3,000 are also going to Chester-le-Street Rowing Club, for a new coaching launch, Great Lumley Community Association for new furniture, and Chester-le-Street Community Association, for stage stage lighting.

A new Royal British Legion group in Chester-le-Street is getting £1,700 and Girl Guiding Chester-le-Street is getting £2,468 for its cooking for all and healthy eating project.

Burnmoor Cricket Club is receiving £2,540 for its pavilion revamp, Chester-le-Street Junior School FA is getting £2,500 for new goal posts at seven venues, and Chester-le-Street Town Football Club will get £843 for a sweeper for its new multi-purpose pitch.

AAP co-ordinator Andrew Megginson said: “The 22 projects that applied were all fantastic projects and it was a shame that we couldn’t support all of them.

“We will commit to working with all the projects who missed out on funds to see if we can find them funding from other external sources.”

He added that he hoped that all organisations had been able to raise their profile by attending the event.