As the National Lottery celebrates 20 years of making people’s dreams come true, The Standard looked back at how it has helped local people and organisations.

One of the biggest grants in the Maldon district was for £675,000 to the Dawn Sailing Barge Trust in 2001.

The lottery grant has enabled the trust to restore the Dawn Sailing barge, which is the last full-size, Maldon Stack barge built with a tiller, back to it’s original glory.

The Dawn Sailing barge, which is currently being restored at St Osyths, is due to return to Maldon in December.