Archives Revealed

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With our support, The National Archives is expanding the only grant programme in the UK dedicated to cataloguing archival collections.

We’ve invested £5million into the £6m programme to help make archive collections more accessible and representative of the lives and perspectives of people across the UK, unlocking heritage for research and enjoyment.

As a leading partner in Archives Revealed, we’re working with The National Archives, the Pilgrim Trust and the Wolfson Foundation to scale up cataloguing, research and public engagement projects at archives across the UK.

More grants for archive collections, from industrial to architectural heritage

Our funding for Archives Revealed is one of our strategic initiatives, which give targeted support to address long-standing heritage issues and opportunities at scale.

Grants awarded in the first eighteen months of our support for the programme include:

50 Scoping Grants totalling £150,000, such as evaluating 166,000 files held by Historic Environment Scotland to support the safeguarding of Scotland’s architectural heritage.
43 Cataloguing Grants totalling £1.95m, including funding a dedicated archivist at the National Museums and Galleries of Northern Ireland to catalogue the ship plan archive of Harland & Wolff, designers of the Titanic
two Consortium Grants totalling £295,000, such as the Vindolanda Trust partnering with Durham University and North East Museums to connect people to the history of Hadrian’s Wall through five archive collections

Explore a snapshot of more funded projects.

Building a more resilient archives sector

In addition to multiple rounds of grants, ending in 2027, Archives Revealed will build lasting resilience across the archives sector with a development and training programme. Opportunities for cohort working and peer-to-peer mentoring will foster relationships and promote skills and knowledge sharing.

Alistair Brown, Head of Museums, Libraries and Archives Policy at the Heritage Fund, said: “Across the UK, archives, museums, charities and community organisations hold archival material that has the power to reveal our shared history – but there is often no clear record of what the archives contain.

"Archives Revealed will ensure that archival material from over 150 archives is identified, catalogued and shared so that communities can access and tell their stories. Our significant investment in Archives Revealed has enabled a step change in tackling the UK's backlog of uncatalogued archival material – we can't wait to see what stories the programme will reveal."