Lluest Horse and Pony Trust is bidding to bag a massive cash boost from the Tesco Bags of Help initiative.

Tesco teamed up with Groundwork to launch its community funding scheme, which sees grants of £4,000, £2,000 and £1,000 raised from carrier bag sales in Tesco stores awarded to local community projects.

Three groups in every Tesco region have been shortlisted to receive the cash award and shoppers are being invited to head along to Tesco stores to vote for who they think should take away the top grant.

Lluest Horse and Pony Trust is one of the groups on the shortlist.

The charity is aiming to use the Tesco Funds to improve stable facilities it make it easier for volunteers including those with learning difficulties to work alongside their rescue ponies

Commenting on the Tesco Bags of Help award, Rhiannon Pugh, Lluest Trustee said: “We are thrilled to have been shortlisted for a share of the funds, this will make a tremendous difference to our volunteers and to the lives of the ponies who they support.

“It’s great to see big businesses like Tesco supporting small local charities, it really does have an impact and makes a huge difference to all those involved.”

Tesco’s Bags of Help project has already delivered over £63 million to more than 20,000 projects across Britain.

Tesco customers get the chance to vote for three different groups every time they shop.

Every other month, when votes are collected, three groups in each of Tesco’s regions will be awarded funding.

Alec Brown, Head of Community at Tesco, said: “Bags of Help has been a fantastic success and we’ve been overwhelmed by the response from customers. It’s such a special scheme because it’s local people who decide how the money will be spent in their community. There are some fantastic projects on the shortlists and we can’t wait to see these come to life in hundreds of communities.”

Groundwork’s National Chief Executive, Graham Duxbury, said: “Bags of Help continues to enable local communities up and down Britain to improve the local spaces and places that matter to them.

“The diversity of projects that are being funded shows that local communities have a passion to create something great in their area. We are pleased to be able to be a part of the journey and provide support and encouragement to help local communities thrive.”

Funding is available to community groups and charities looking to fund local projects that bring benefits to communities. Anyone can nominate a project and organisations can apply online. To find out more visit www.tesco.com/bagsofhelp.