Frome neighbours celebrate £1 million lottery win

Four local charities also receive funding boost worth £200,000

Residents in a Frome street are celebrating after winning a share of £1 million with the Postcode Lottery, with four local charities also receiving funds.

Nicola Young, 44, and Cameron Scott, 82, both from Innox Hill, each won £333,333, along with a third unnamed winner, after their postcode was selected for the Postcode Lottery’s weekly Millionaire Street prize on Saturday 4th July.

The win also meant four Frome charities received funding, with We Hear You (WHY) and OpenStoryTellers each receiving £75,000, while Fair Frome and Purple Elephant each received £25,000.

Dream come true

Nicola said the money was a “dream come true” after she and her partner Damien Hardaker had spent years renovating their home.

Nicola said, “It’s life changing. We moved in December 2020 into a house that needed a lot of work. I started playing the Postcode Lottery because I knew we could do with a bit of a capital injection. But I never expected to be holding a cheque for this sum of money in my hands. It feels incredible. I never even dreamed this could happen. It means we can finish our house.”

She added that some of the money could go towards a family holiday, while the win would also allow Damien to replace his old mountain bike.

Beyond comprehension

Down the road, Cameron and his wife Daniela also celebrated after Cameron started playing the Postcode Lottery two years ago.

Cameron, who creates intricate wood relief carvings and collages, was working on his latest piece when the lottery team arrived at their door.

He said, “When I saw the number three come out of the envelope, I thought maybe £30,000, then another three and another. I was thinking of all the little things I could do in the house but it’s beyond my comprehension what you can do with this amount of money. We’ll have to think hard because it’s once in a lifetime.”

The couple said the money would allow them to help their family, travel and complete projects they had previously been unable to afford.

Nicola and Cameron were pleased to discover that charities in their home town would also benefit from the win.

WHY, which provides counselling and support for people affected by cancer and other life-threatening conditions, said the funding would allow 100 people to access up to 12 sessions of counselling or emotional support.

Community fundraiser Robbie Newton said, “At a time when many small charities are feeling the financial pressures of rising costs and increasing demand for services, support like this provides vital financial resilience and helps ensure we can continue to be there for those who need us most.”

OpenStoryTellers charity director Alex MacNeil said, “We’re absolutely thrilled to receive this grant from The Millionaire Street Grant Fund. It will make a huge difference to our charity and the wonderful community of people with learning disabilities we support.”

Postcode Lottery players have raised more than £1.8 billion for charities and good causes.