Nine years ago, the National Lottery announced that it would invest in dozens of communities across the UK - in place which were lacking a community feel or towns which were struggling with deprivation.

Among these places was a small part of Borehamwood - Cowley Hill and Brookmeadow wards - where £1m was set aside to be spent in those wards.

'Big Locals' were set up - here it is Leecliffe - and these organisations are tasked with spending the million pounds in ways which will benefit the people living here.

Leecliffe has not invested much - of the £1m, a little over £900,000 is still to be spent, up until 2026.

So far, dozens of community events and workshops have been made possible thanks to Big Local investment including coffee mornings, arts and crafts workshops, trips to the seaside, lunch clubs and a summer 'movies in the park' event.

Now Leecliffe is ready to invest further with a BMX track in Meadow Park. It will only be small, but it is hoped it will provide a place of entertainment for youngsters. A planning application has been submitted to Hertsmere Borough Council.

Meanwhile, Leecliffe has also also expressed an interest on the bowls club site in Meadow Park which it would like to use as a permanent hub and community space for young people.

Leecliffe want the BMX track to be the start of some more obvious development in this area of Borehamwood and the organisation is appealing for members of the community to tell them what they would like to see. The next round of consultation will begin in late 2021 when the current plan comes to an end.

Borehamwood Times:

This is the area of Borehamwood which has been allocated the £1m investment

It is Clarion Housing Association which manages the expenditure so all money spent by Leecliffe is overseen by Clarion and a Big Local trust.

Chairman of Leecliffe Big Local, Donna Inwood, said: “Having launched our latest plan for 2019-2021 with the endorsement of local trust, we are excited that this includes a range of children and youth Activities in the area which has been unanimously asked for in our consultations.

"Having spent some time engaging with the community and getting their feedback we now anticipate that our development and involvement in the area will increase significantly. One area that we have constantly struggled with is getting volunteers involved in the Big Local initiative as a result we are always looking for new people to help support & deliver our activities.”

Leecliffe says at at the close of the 2016-2018 plan, the total spend since the first endorsement in 2013 was £259,207.00. There is approximately £900,923.00 left, which includes an interest payment of £105,000.00 that was presented to all Big Local areas in 2018.

To find out more, visit http://leecliffe.org/