A PRIZE jackpot of £25,000 through Northumberland’s contentious lottery scheme will be up-for-grabs from March.

The timescale of the roll-out of Northumberland County Council’s lottery was revealed at the latest Tynedale Local Area Council meeting.

Working with lottery experts, Gatherwell, the council will launch the scheme in the aim of benefitting local causes through ticket sales.

Fifty per cent of each £1 ticket purchased would go to the purchaser’s chosen charity, with 10p going to the county council to cover running costs.

The prize fund will be boosted by 20p from each ticket sold, while 17p will go to Gatherwell for admin costs. The final 3p is VAT.

The county council will finalise the lottery’s website by the turn of the year and will open the application process to good causes early next year, before the scheme goes live in March.

There were concerns expressed by the public about the promotion of gambling to residents when the scheme was first mentioned, however, county councillors were keen to play that down.

Hexham Central with Acomb councillor, Trevor Cessford, said: “If you are a gambler, this would not give you the buzz you need, but this is a good thing if you want to make a donation and stand a chance of winning some money.”