Sussex villagers scoop £1 million in Postcode Lottery

Stunned mum Steph Godfrey, 38, told how she signed up for People’s Postcode Lottery after seeing a win less than six miles away – and bagged £83,333 weeks later.

Steph snapped up a monthly ticket after reading about a winner who shared £1m with neighbours in nearby Bexhill last October.

She said: “I saw someone in Bexhill-on-Sea had won a good amount of money and I thought, ‘why not’. When I read about it, I just set it up right away.”

She added: “I was thinking £1,000 would be nice, but this is amazing. I don’t know how I feel. If I could talk to the other winner I read about I would say, ‘thanks very much’.”

Steph shared £1m with 10 other neighbours in Catsfield - renowned for its annual Christmas tree flinging competition - after TN33 9DN landed the lottery’s weekly Millionaire Street prize on Saturday 7 February. Every ticket was worth £83,333. But one player doubled their prize with two tickets.

Now Steph, who teaches special needs children in a local nursery, is planning travel adventures for her son, 12, and eight-year-old daughter.

She said: “Now I’ll take my children on holiday. I haven’t had them abroad yet and I’m desperate to do that. It will be amazing to take them on a plane. Somewhere exciting My daughter wants to go to Disney, and my son would love China.

“This will make a massive difference to me. It means I can do some amazing things with my children.”

But she also has plans to continue a rolling home improvement project on the terraced home she moved into last April.

She said: “I’d like to finish the house. I’ve done lots, but I had to stop. Now I can do my dining room and the hallway. It’s nice to win with my neighbours, but it’s crazy that it’s happened here when I’ve just become part of this road. I feel even more privileged.”

Steph’s motivation for joining Postcode Lottery was also to help charities. She said: “It is putting money into something and having the opportunity to get something back while knowing that you’re making a difference.

And cuddling her cute pet Maine Coon Ragdoll mix cat, Arlow, she added: “I’m going to get him a catio.”

Across the road, carpenter Mark Holman hugged wife-to-be Laura Lansdale when she broke down after seeing how much they’d won. Now the couple are planning to turbo-charge their plans for their 150-guest wedding in May after getting engaged at Christmas.

Mark, 38, said: “We’re getting married in May, so this will make the wedding a bit more special. We just want everyone to have a good time. We haven’t got food organised yet, so we’ll get some nice food.”

And they’re already dreaming of honeymooning on an American road trip.

Mark said: “We haven’t even planned a honeymoon yet. I did San Francisco to New York 10 years ago. I’d love Laura and our little boy to experience something special like that.”

But the dad-of-one also wants a new works van to replace the dodgy one he relies on to get him to jobs.

He said: “I need another van. The one I’ve got keeps breaking down and I’m in the process of getting a new one.

Tearful Laura, 34, said: “I’m overwhelmed. We were expecting £1,000 and anything over that was going to be a bonus. This is mad.”

And the pair were delighted to win with their neighbours. Laura said: “We’ll invite the neighbours round that have won, too. It makes it that much more special, and we can enjoy it together.”

At the opposite end of the street, Janet Fowle, 73, had just finished singing at church choir practice when she got a call to say she’d won. But she had to get a friend to contact husband John, 76 – who also has a ticket - to check if he’d had the same message.

Now the couple – who celebrate their Golden Wedding anniversary in November – have a list of plans after picking up a cheque for £83,333 each.

Janet, who started crying as their wins were revealed, said: “We had just finished singing a hymn when I got the phone call.

“I was with a friend and she called John who was at a piano lesson. She said, ‘John’s had a call, John’s had a call’. I was on hot bricks and said he had to come home immediately.”

Their wish lists include a new kitchen, car, holidays and helping out their grown-up son and daughter.

Former hairdresser Janet: “This is lovely. What will I do with it? Spend it. I would like a new kitchen. Simple things to make life comfortable. We’re quite simple people. This will make a big difference.”

Retired calibration technician John said: “She’s the spender and I’m the saver. I might update the car. But I view this as something to have in the bank and be a bit of a cushion.

“Of course, family will be one of the main considerations. It would be nice to help our daughter and son. That sort of money in our lives is remarkable. We often look at the Postcode Lottery adverts and think, ‘that will never come to us’. But it has.”

John said: “We holiday quite humbly in the UK, although we used to go abroad.” Janet chipped in: “I’d like to go to Japan.” John added: “I’d like to go on a cruise to see the Norwegian fjords.”

Next door, Alan Hazeltine was on the verge of tears when he saw his winnings and immediately vowed to use it to help his two beloved daughters, aged 21 and 18 – as well as an exotic holiday.

Alan, 46 – whose wife Nicola, 49, watched from a window in their cottage home - said: “I didn’t think it would be that much. I can’t believe that. It feels peculiar. It feels surreal. This is a proper amount of money that can make a difference. We can do a lot with it and fun stuff as well.

“We’ll probably have a nice holiday and help out our two daughters. It gives me the opportunity to kickstart their lives. It’s all about them, really. I focus my life on the children.

But there’ll be a family holiday first. Alan said: “Somewhere we wouldn’t normally go to, like somewhere in the Indian Ocean or places in the Caribbean. He added: “I love my car, but I’d like a Porsche Turbo.”

A few doors along, Deborah Sweetman started weeping after revealing her cheque, then revealed she’ll finish building work at her home – and go on a string of trips. Top of her list is a festive trip to visit daughter Ella, 23, who’s currently working in Australia.

Emotional Deborah, 62, said: “I was going to sign up for two years, then I thought why keep thinking about it, just do it. I saw the advertising with lots of groups all winning. This is going to make a big difference.

“My daughter is in Australia at the moment, so I’d quite like to go out there for next Christmas. She’ll be thrilled. She’s coming home for a trip in April and we’re going to see my stepson in Madrid. We can have a little party in Madrid.

“We’ve also got friends who live in Tahiti, so we might stretch to that. We haven’t seen them in five years, so that would be really nice.” The wedding catering firm worker added: “I’ll maybe also finish building work at my house.”

The winning neighbours told of their passion for supporting local, national and international charities with their monthly subscriptions. They were delighted to learn that their wins mean local charities have also benefitted.

And one charity has received a second funding boost in four months from Postcode Lottery players.

Bexhill and Battle Foodbank (Churches Together in Bexhill), which is run in partnership with local churches and facilitated by Churches Together, have been awarded £40,000. They previously received £30,000 when Millionaire Street landed in Bexhill-on-Sea in October 2025. Michelle Pannell, Bexhill and Battle Foodbank Manager, said: “We are thrilled to again be selected as a recipient of Millionaire Street funding, and we cannot thank players of People’s Postcode Lottery enough.

“This money will make a world of difference to local people through the running of our two foodbanks for those in crisis and two pantries for local people who need a helping hand due to the raised costs of living. It will also make a difference to our advice service, which helps our clients to address the underlying causes of their crisis and get more money in their pocket, so they no longer need to use a foodbank.”

Michelle told how they have been able to launch a new service after getting the previous funding award.

She said: “Since receiving £30,000 thanks to players in October 2025, we have been able to launch a new one-to-one budgeting and money coaching service for our clients. This has been received so well, and will make an ongoing difference to the financial capability of those who engage with it.

“We have also launched a new pantry in Battle and are investigating further sites, due to the popularity of these, and we are negotiating a move to establish a proper warehouse to allow us to better serve our foodbanks and pantries.”

She added: “In the last couple of years, the funding landscape has changed greatly, so to be given unrestricted funding that allows us to continue to employ our team and pay the bills is an absolute godsend, and we couldn't be any more grateful to the players of Postcode Lottery.

“It is a delight and honour to serve our communities in Bexhill and Battle, and through our community development work with local people, we hope that in the future there will be no need for foodbanks. But until that day comes, we are here for anyone local who needs us."

People’s Postcode Lottery costs £12.25 a month to play and there are guaranteed winners every day. People play with their chosen postcode and are automatically entered into all draws.   

  Details of all the prizes players have the chance to win with a monthly subscription can be found at

Michelle told how they have been able to launch a new service after getting the previous funding award.

She said: “Since receiving £30,000 thanks to players in October 2025, we have been able to launch a new one-to-one budgeting and money coaching service for our clients. This has been received so well, and will make an ongoing difference to the financial capability of those who engage with it.

“We have also launched a new pantry in Battle and are investigating further sites, due to the popularity of these, and we are negotiating a move to establish a proper warehouse to allow us to better serve our foodbanks and pantries.”

She added: “In the last couple of years, the funding landscape has changed greatly, so to be given unrestricted funding that allows us to continue to employ our team and pay the bills is an absolute godsend, and we couldn't be any more grateful to the players of Postcode Lottery.

“It is a delight and honour to serve our communities in Bexhill and Battle, and through our community development work with local people, we hope that in the future there will be no need for foodbanks. But until that day comes, we are here for anyone local who needs us."

People’s Postcode Lottery costs £12.25 a month to play and there are guaranteed winners every day. People play with their chosen postcode and are automatically entered into all draws.   

Details of all the prizes players have the chance to win with a monthly subscription can be found at www.postcodelottery.co.uk/prizes