WEST Somerset charity Home-Start has been offered a financial lifeline in its fight to survive just months after losing a third of its annual budget.

The organisation, whose highly trained volunteers provide vital support to families in difficulty, has been awarded £45,000 of lottery funding.

The cash, from the Big Lottery's Reaching Communities programme, will mean a £15,000 annual injection of funds into the Home-Start budget for the next three years.

It will enable the charity to continue helping young families, particularly those with children under five, struggling with childcare, budgeting or housing problems.

But although Home-Start organisers were delighted at the success of the application - announced on Tuesday - they are still struggling to overcome the impact of the loss of £22,500 of Somerset County Council funding.

Home-Start West Somerset senior organiser Ali Sanderson said: "Everyone here is delighted with the news of the Reaching Communities grant as it has become increasingly difficult to access funding, and yet the requests from families in need of support continue to increase.

"This grant will enable us to continue to provide the informal, confidential, practical and emotional support that West Somerset families tell us they value so much, and continue to improve the outcomes for children in this community in the long term."

Home-Start had received county council grant aid through the SureStart project children centres but has had to weather a reduction in the level of financial help year on year.

But this year it lost all the local authority funding after family outreach work was made the subject of a bidding process.

Restrictions imposed by the county council meant Home-Start had no chance of winning the contract.

Mrs Sanderson said the lottery cash was great news and very encouraging.

But she said it was an essential part of the organisation's core funding for the next three years, rather than additional money.

So cuts have still had to be made to ensure the continued delivery of the service into the future.

"We have made small cuts in almost every area of our budget," said Mrs Sanderson.

A weekly afternoon drop-in group in Minehead has had to be axed and office administration cover cut.

The organisation has also been looking at ways of saving money on its office rent and from next Wednesday will be relocating from Bampton Street to The Parks.

Mrs Sanderson said Stonham Housing had come to Home-Start's rescue and had offered a temporary room at Prospect House, one of its properties, in a "very generous" deal.

The Neighbourhood Learning in Deprived Communities initiative has also come to Home-Start's aid and will be funding a new volunteer preparation course, which begins at the end of April.

Mrs Sanderson said Home-Start, which has 34 volunteers and 12 trustees, was grateful for the support it had received from many different organisations and individuals, including Free Press readers, during what had been a very difficult time over the past few months.

"There have been many personal donations and offers of practical help for which we are extremely grateful," she said.

Big Lottery fund head of region for the South West Mark Cotton said his organisation was delighted to support Home-Start to help some of the people most in need:

"This grant aid would make a real positive difference to the lives of young families in West Somerset who were struggling to cope with the demands of parenthood, as well as budgeting in a difficult economic climate.

"Families in more rural areas of West Somerset may also be feeling isolated and in need of some support.

"With this grant, Home-Start will provide the practical help and guidance that is desperately needed."