Birmingham Millionaire Street

A great-grandmother has banked a share of £1 Million in our Millionaire Street prize today and all she wants is more garden gnomes!

Stunned Joan said she'll celebrate her £111,111 windfall by adding to her family of more than 40 garden ornaments.

The great-grandmother of five bagged the whopping prize after her Birmingham postcode, B29 5PN, was revealed as the winner in People's Postcode Lottery's latest Millionaire Street.

Joan is one of nine neighbours on Shenley Lane to land a share of £1 Million, with each player scooping £111,111.

Gnome Sweet Gnome

Joan, who worked in the canteen of Birmingham Women's Hospital before retiring three years ago, said, "It's unbelievable and absolutely beautiful. A lot of us haven't ever seen that kind of money before."

Joan isn't in the market for a sports car or diamond rings after her win. Instead she's happy to indulge her garden decorating passion.

She said, "I've never needed much. I just really enjoy collecting and painting ornaments for my garden."

Joan bought her first gnome from the local garden centre over a decade ago. Now she shares her hobby with her great-grandkids.

Joan said, "My grandson bought me the biggest gnome, which stands at three-foot-tall, and when the kids come over, they each have their own pot and we all paint gnomes together."

But the passion for gnomes isn't for everyone in her family. Daughter Sam joked, "I love her to bits, but she can drive me insane - everywhere we go it's 'oh have you seen that gnome over there? Have we got enough room in the car? Can we get two?'"

"We always wind her up, but she enjoys doing it and she lives a happy and full life."

Sam added, "I'm biased but it couldn't have happened to a nicer woman. She's always there for everyone and is recognised all over Birmingham by mums who spent time at the hospital she worked at for over 23 years."

Joan said a large portion of the money will help her family. She said, "My children will all benefit from this, they'll all be treated, and it won't just be my garden that will light up."

Joan, who has lived in her current home for over 40 years, is also now planning a holiday to America with her two sisters and brother-in-law.

A Champagne Celebration

Joan's next-door neighbour Paula also enjoyed a big win. Supermarket worker Paula, who was joined by husband Michael, said, "It's amazing, £12 a month and it's changed our lives completely."

Michael added, "It's changed our lives overnight, we can get a new kitchen, an extension to the back of the house and we can treat the kids."

The couple are flying to Benidorm in two weeks for some autumn sunshine and now plan to splash out on an upgrade.

The mum-of-three said, "It'll be more champagne and a bit more luxury, we don't usually do luxury."

Paula and Michael also want to spend a portion of the winnings on a memorial bench for their back garden to remember their late parents and friends.

Paula said, "We lost both of our parents and we've lost some good friends over the last three years. We want to engrave all their names on to the bench, so we have somewhere to sit and reflect."

"This win maybe has got something to do with the ones that sadly aren't with us anymore."

Following the neighbours' Millionaire Street prize wins, nearby charities will also benefit.

Charities Win Too

A combined total of £1 Million will be shared between local charities in the winning Millionaire Street areas from October's draws.

EcoBirmingham, a charity that helps create greener, fairer, and healthier communities in Birmingham, was awarded £45,000 by Postcode Local Trust.

The Northfield based charity strives to make sustainable living accessible for all residents of Birmingham. They do this by giving them the tools they need to take positive environmental action and help others do the same - regardless of their age, ability, or financial situation.

The charity runs community-based activities such as cycling groups, children's holiday clubs, energy audits and cooking workshops that give residents the skills and knowledge needed to make small sustainable changes in their day to day lives.

Simon Slater, Chief Executive of EcoBirmingham, said, "This money is gold dust for us. It will provide certainty for the charity, helping us continue and enhance the work we do. For us, our work is all about enabling people to make small adjustments to their lives - these all add up to create a continuous change."

Other local charities receiving funding thanks to this Millionaire Street prize win include:

• Home-Start Birmingham Central and South-West - £60,000 Home-Start is one of the UK's leading family support charities. It helps parents to build better lives and better futures for their children. The charity has been supporting families for over 40 years right across the UK.

• PDSA Birmingham - £50,000 PDSA is an animal charity which takes care of pets in need. The charity has two Pet Hospitals in Birmingham which care for pets whose owners can't afford the full cost of their veterinary treatment. It's also the leading authority on pet health.

• The Stonehouse Gang - £40,000 A youth and community charity based in Selly Oak, Birmingham. It provides local young people with opportunities enabling them to grow and gain confidence, whilst having fun and building life-long friendships.

• Feather Tail Parrot Rescue - £5,000 A non-profit, registered charity whose mission is to rescue, rehabilitate and rehome parrots in England, Scotland and Wales.

• St Gabriel's Centre Weoley Castle - £15,000 Provides a centre for the benefit of the community by associating together with the inhabitants and the local authorities, voluntary and other organisations in a common effort to advance education and relieve poverty.

• Positive Birthing and Beyond CIO - £5,000 A charity that aims to promote and protect the good health and well-being of childbearing women and their families by offering support, information and guidance.

• Shenley Lane Community Association and Sports Centre - £15,000 A local charity whose objectives are to improve the social welfare and living conditions of the most deprived and vulnerable members of the community.

• Northfield Community Partnership - £50,000 A charity helping people and community groups in South Birmingham. For 14 years, they have delivered a vital range of services from their Hub in the heart of Northfield, working with over 10,000 people a year.

• Excite Active CIC - £10,000 A non-profit social enterprise that enables people to be more active and develop key life skills. By supporting the training of life skills such as leadership, communication and teamwork, they help build the resilience of their beneficiaries, regardless of their backgrounds or economic disadvantage.

• Shencare Community Transport - £45,000 Shencare supports many other voluntary organisations within the South-West Birmingham area and plays an integral role within the local community. Their commitment to community transport in Birmingham provides a lifeline for its users and without it some people would be unable to get out.

All funding was awarded by Postcode Local Trust (opens in a new tab).

Supporting Good Causes

Today's prize is part of a draw promoted on behalf of Postcode International Trust (opens in a new tab). Supported by our players, this trust delivers grant funding to organisations that work to support the creation of sustainable solutions that alleviate poverty, hunger and enable food security. Benefiting charities include Oxfam GB, British Red Cross and ActionAid.

With People's Postcode Lottery, 33% of the ticket price goes to Charities. Our amazing players have raised more than £1.1 Billion for thousands of good causes.

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