Tai Chi Therapy could help ease the pain for arthritis sufferers in Gwynedd, thanks to National Lottery funding to develop new schemes in the area.

Tai chi for Therapy (T.C.T), based in Harlech, has secured a £300 Community Chest grant from the Sports Council for Wales.

T.C.T is a voluntary organisation that teaches the low impact Chinese martial art with a view to help sufferers of musculoskeletal conditions, such as arthritis, by improving flexibility and relieving pain. Their sessions are based on the theories of Dr Paul Lam, a practicing physician and tai chi master from Sydney, Australia who is a world leader in the field of tai chi for health improvement.

The funding will be put towards a new training certificate, three new beginner groups and a new scheme in Blaenau Ffestiniog.

Instructor and coordinator, Celia Brown explains, "This funding is a great help financially. I am in an area where help is thin on the ground and this just keeps us going.

"The form of Tai Chi that we teach has been adapted to make it as safe as possible. People feel better and get flexible. It is also very good for coordination and balance, and those are things that we lose as we get older."

Since the inception of the Sports Council for Wales’ Community Chest scheme in 1999, communities across the length and breadth of Wales have been investing heavily in sports and physical activity projects.

As a result of the popularity and undoubted success of the scheme, the Sports Council for Wales is raising the level of grant. Organisations keen to develop sport & physical activity in Wales can now receive up to £1000 for a qualifying project over a 12 month period.

The scope of the scheme has also been widened. Grants have traditionally been awarded to sports clubs and sporting bodies. Now most organisations seeking to develop physical activity and sporting projects will be eligible for an award.

The Community Chest has recently been infiltrating additional areas of work such as the voluntary sector (e.g. Voluntary Youth Clubs, Women’s Institute) and the workplace, as well as continuing to support projects in the health and education arenas. So while funding the local football club might get the younger members of the community moving, backing a walking group will encourage more adults to get active.

Chair of the Sports Council for Wales, Philip Carling, said:

"Community Chest has been and continues to be a huge success and is very popular throughout Gwynedd. The increase in funding and the greater scope of the scheme will increase its effectiveness.

"Panels based in each of the 22 local authorities in Wales hold the purse strings and have delegated authority to award grants to worthwhile projects. We want to hear of bright ideas and projects that will get more people in Gwynedd more active, more often."