BRAG Enterprises Ltd have hit the jackpot with a huge lottery grant of £104,587 to help them continue their community food pantry in Crosshill.

And a cash award also ensured the return of the Scottish Coal Carrying Championships to Kelty last week after a break of six years.

Brag were the big winners and managing director Brian Robertson-Fern said: “We are absolutely delighted that Pantry@Brag has secured National Lottery funding and it’s a huge achievement for everyone involved in the pantry, including members and volunteers.

“This will help us to continue to provide a much-needed pantry to our local Benarty community, providing access to local, affordable and nutritious food.

"We will also develop a food education programme and opportunities for those facing social isolation to come together and meet up.

"All this ensures that our community pantry will remain a lasting legacy long after the pandemic is over.”

Anyone from the area can sign up free of charge to become a ‘pantry member’ to receive fresh food that’s been grown in the local area.

Brag's food education programme will give local people the chance to gain certifications in food, hygiene and elementary cooking skills while recipe card and family session workshops will also take place.

They're celebrating a lottery windfall in Kelty with an award of £5,318 enabling the coal race, which celebrates the village's strong links with the mining industry, can go ahead on Saturday.

It's one of only two in the world and is held over a 1km course through the streets of the village.

The men’s race consists of competitors carrying 50kg sacks of coal on their back while participants in the ladies race will shoulder 25kg bags.

Organiser Michael Boyle said: “Our last race was in 2015 so it’s great to be back.

"The irony of the coal race is that it celebrates our strong links with the mining industry which brought hardship and poor health to many workers and families so it’s important that the race once again conveys a message of health and sport to all who watch and take part.

“The event will primarily help our community in terms of pride and self esteem and, although the races are competitive, it’s first and foremost a community event which brings us all together again for a sporting occasion.”

Across Fife, seven groups will share in £147,889 from the National Lottery Community Fund to help local communities adapt and recover from COVID-19 as restrictions ease.   

The 19th Dunfermline Brownie Unit received £500 and the group will use the money to help take on an adult volunteer, three 'young leader' volunteers (aged 14 to 15) and increase the pack size with up to 12 new girls aged 7-10 years.

Options in Life, which helps cared-for adults with autism, learning and other disabilities, received a £10,000 grant to enable them to deliver online, as well as in-person, sessions.

Families in Trauma will use their £9,984 award to develop a peer support team to support people completing eLearning courses.

The group was set up by Maggie Wright and her husband, Steve, after they found themselves dealing with a sudden traumatic family event with little experience of how to handle it or who to turn to.

Groups in Crail and Methilhill also received £7,500 and £10,000 respectively and, across Scotland, funding of more than £2.1 million was announced on Thursday for 103 community projects.

The National Lottery Community Fund’s Scotland chair, Kate Still, said: “It’s great to see a such a variety of projects being funded across Fife to help people adapt and recover from the pandemic.

“As groups are beginning to take steps to bring people together again National Lottery players can be proud to know that the money they raise is making a huge difference helping to re-connect people in communities across Scotland.” 

Last year the fund awarded £588.2m to communities across the UK with 83 per cent of the grants – under £10,000 – going to grassroots groups and charities.