Manx Lottery Trust, in collaboration with The National Lottery Community Fund, has awarded a grant of £40,000 towards the construction of a viewing platform with upgraded wheelchair access in Bradda Glen, Port Erin, Isle of Man.

The scheme has been devised by the members of the Rotary Club of Rushen & Western Mann. They will enlarge the existing small viewing platform on the Bradda Head lower footpath in order to provide a large viewing area that will have full disabled access, with wheelchair and environmentally-friendly base, a 1m high glass balustrade set back from the existing hedge to enhance the enjoyment of the views, give shelter and with the provision of wheelchair-friendly picnic tables. The viewing platform will consist of formally-arranged paviours which will be accessed by an adjacent tarmacadam footpath, removing the existing uneven and soft surfaces.
John Lindon, Past President of the Rotary Club of Rushen & Western Mann, explained more about the work: ‘The project is being undertaken to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Club which was founded in 1973. The Club’s first community project was the creation of the Bradda Head trail, on which the new viewing platform will be located. This work will further benefit the community, in the same vein as the original project that it celebrates, as the scheme will open up the views from Bradda Head to everyone, so creating a lasting legacy for the community of today and tomorrow.

‘The scheme will be project-managed from within the Club by members who are experienced in this type of work, such as architects, builders, engineers and quantity surveyors. Members have to date given more than 240 hours working on the scheme design, preparation of scoping documents, planning application submissions, correspondence with stakeholders, site meetings etc.
‘We’d like to express our huge gratitude to Manx Lottery Trust for its invaluable support through the Community Awards Programme.’

Sarah Kelly, Chairman of Manx Lottery Trust, added: ‘We are pleased to award this grant to the Rotary Club of Rushen & Western Mann. The ongoing dedication, commitment and expertise of the volunteers to help improve access to such a wonderful part of the Island is to be applauded.’