A DISABILITY group featured on The Secret Millionaire has reached the final of a competition to win a funding boost.

The Disability Community, in the north of Glasgow, is appealing for the public's help to secure the money to buy a new minibus.

The Possilpark group is one of six finalists taking part in the People's Millions Big Lottery Fund.

The groups want to take home up to £50,000, with the public voting by phone to help decide who wins the prize. The first two projects to go head to head today will be the Disability Community and Fabb Scotland.

As the Evening Times reported in February this year, the disability group, which has 300 members, was facing the axe due to a funding crisis.

They were saved from closure when Glasgow City Council stepped in and gave them an advance of next year's funding.

However, the team is desperate for a new minibus, which costs £48,000, to make sure all their members can be taken to and from clubs regularly.

One of the clubs, Cook 'n' Care, which delivers 26,000 homemade meals a year to users, won the Evening Times' Community Champion Team Award last year.

Centre coordinator Melanie Fyfe said: "If we win The People's Millions it will enable us to provide reliable, secure and roadworthy transport to vulnerable, disabled and elderly residents of North Glasgow.

"We provide lunch clubs, jewellery classes, art classes, IT and youth clubs throughout the week and many other activities.

"At the moment the transport we provide is limited and we can't transport wheelchair passengers, so some of our members are missing out.

"Our current buses are really old and winning this money would mean so much to us as it would enable us to purchase a new disabled access minibus immediately."

In 2008, the centre took part in Channel 4's Secret Millionaire TV series, when property tycoon Nick Leslau spent time with service users and staff.

He later donated £225,000 to help with the group's work.

The group is up against Fabb Scotland's Blazing Saddles project, which is aiming to allow people with disabilities in the Callender area to get involved in cycling.

Tomorrow Holytown Primary School and Nursery Class will battle it out with Peek - Possibilities for Each and Every Kid Ltd.

And on Wednesday, Plus (Forth Valley) Ltd will take on Home Start Stirling.

The voting numbers will be available on the day from www.peoplesmillions.org.uk

The groups will also make their case each night to viewers on STV at around 6pm.

Jackie Killeen, director of Big Lottery Fund Scotland, said: "The People's Millions competition is a brilliant opportunity for people to have a say in how Lottery money is spent in their communities.

"Voters will have some difficult choices to make in deciding which of the excellent projects going head to head will get their support.

"But most importantly, the end result will benefit people and communities most in need."

rachel.loxton@eveningtimes.co.uk