| The National Lottery Heritage Fund

A group of people standing on the deck of a small wooden boat

Welcoming people aboard the Hastings fishing fleet. Credit: Euan Baker.

Stories

Community collaboration is helping keep Hastings’ fishing heritage alive

Hastings Fishermen’s Protection Society and Hastings Contemporary art gallery have teamed up to preserve and celebrate local stories, skills and practices.

A visiting schoolgirl rings a cast iron bell on a bracket.

A visiting school child tests a bell. Credit: Loughborough Bellfoundry Trust.

Stories

Ringing the changes: engaging the next generation at Britain’s last working bell foundry

Our support is helping to connect the global history of an at-risk craft with new audiences and young people keen to build a career in heritage.

A group of people in high-vis standing around a table converted from an old railway wagon

A behind the scenes tour of the newly renovated Boston Lodge. Credit: Chris Parry.

Stories

How volunteers are powering a historic railway

Boston Lodge shows that investing in people and skills can inspire visitors, boost volunteering and transform heritage.

Four people stand in front of a train engine and hold a progress pride flag

Joanna Jarvis , Imogen Watmore, Ashlynn Hudson-Welburn and Harvey Barker holding Pride banner in front of HST loco in Great Hall, National Railway Museum, (NRM) York. © The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum.

Stories

Mind the gap: uncovering missing stories from railway history

People, Pride and Progress is recording the experiences of LGBTQ+ workers to explore unheard perspectives on railway heritage.

Supporting diversity, equity and inclusion in the great outdoors. Photo: Wayfinding project.

Stories

Inclusion, access and participation: eight ways to improve your project’s reach and impact

Find out how projects we’ve funded are finding creative ways to open up heritage, involve audiences and create better opportunities to take part.

An artist kneels in front of a painted wall with an intricate pattern on a purple background

Street artist NeSpoon has created artwork on the streets of Bradford, as part of BD: Walls.

Stories

Celebrating Bradford as the City of Culture 2025

The vibrant West Yorkshire city has announced the first events to showcase its incredible heritage and culture across the district throughout 2025, thanks to National Lottery players.

Two people smiling and sitting on camping chairs on an allotment

The Birmingham Allotment Project participants enjoying their plot. Credit: The Birmingham Allotment Project.

Stories

Protecting the environment: ten ideas for built heritage and community projects

From reducing and reusing materials and eco-friendly websites to a woodland for boatbuilders, these projects show how all types of heritage can make positive changes for our planet.

Three people are looking at worksheets and smiling.

Participants at the residential event in June 2023, as part of Heritage Trade Up. Photo: School for Social Entrepreneurs.

Stories

Five tips for more robust and innovative heritage organisations

Hear from the organisations who took part in our Business Support and Enterprise campaign about how they improved organisational resilience in challenging times.

Brunel's SS Great Britain in the dry dock. Photo: Adam Gasson / SS Great Britain Trust.

Stories

Case study: SS Great Britain – Voyage to Carbon Neutral

The SS Great Britain Trust's innovative decarbonising of the conservation system for the world's first iron ship jointly won Sustainable Project of the Year at the Museums + Heritage Awards.

Two Skylark IX volunteers work on building a wooden rowing boat

Two Skylark IX volunteers honing their boatbuilding skills

Stories

Recovery and resilience: advice from a heritage project improving skills and wellbeing

In Dumbarton, Scotland, The Skylark IX Recovery Trust is preserving a Second World War rescue ship through heritage training opportunities to support local people, including those recovering from drug addiction.

People in period costumes with children in front of an old train

Tour guides at the Foyle Valley Railway and Transport Museum posing with visitors. Credit: Destined

Stories

Why you should involve people with lived experience in your heritage project

An interpretive centre run by people with learning disabilities is showcasing Derry/Londonderry’s historic railway heritage and highlighting the importance of inclusion.

Taylor Bell Foundry Loughborough - row of bells created by the foundry

Stories

Britain’s last major bell foundry saved

The restoration of Loughborough Bellfoundry, thanks to £3.45million National Lottery funding, means the bells can continue to ring out for years to come.

Industrial, maritime and transport

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