Cultures and memories

Cultures and memories

Two people are in a costume room and are looking down at a pattern on a cutting table. In the background are images of costumes, costumes on mannequins and rolls of fabric stacked on shelves
Credit: Carrie Davenport / Lyric Theatre.
These are the customs and traditions, skills and knowledge, passed down to us through generations.

Since 1994 we have awarded over £510million to more than 24,600 community and cultural heritage projects across the UK.

What do we support?

We fund projects which help to explore, save and celebrate the traditions, customs, skills and knowledge of different communities.

This cultural heritage is sometimes referred to as intangible or living heritage. This is because it is constantly changing and kept alive when practiced or performed.

We also fund projects which document and share people’s memories. This often involves capturing oral histories and ensuring they are accessible now and in the future.

Project ideas

Our funding could help people:

  • research and share oral traditions, such as storytelling or local dialects
  • train others in traditional skills and crafts, from dry stone walling and blacksmithing to basket weaving and textile making
  • research the origins of culture, such as music, theatre or dance, and create performances influenced by past styles
  • share the history and fun of celebrations, festivals or rituals with new audiences, from games and cooking to carnivals and fayres
  • capture accounts of traditional knowledge or pass it on, such as woodland management or home remedies
  • record the stories of ordinary people through oral histories, for example about growing up, migration or work
  • retell people’s memories about a place or event, such as a long-stay hospital, the miners' strikes or the punk movement

How to get funding

If you have an idea for a project, we would love to hear from you.

Young people making use of professional photography equipment
Young people making use of professional photography equipment

Projects

Young people discover the story of the Accrington Pals

Young people researched the experiences of the Accrington Pals in the First World War, developing a short film and workshop for secondary schools and encouraging others to make their own films.

The students taking part in one of the organised activities
The students taking part in one of the organised activities

Projects

Portobello Youth Heritage Project - 'Dig Deep'

Young people worked with a community arts organisation to discover the medieval heritage of their local area and build a stronger sense of community cohesion.

Young people in Nuneaton explored buildings in their area
Young people in Nuneaton explored buildings in their area. Image: Mercurial Arts Ltd.

Projects

Building Sights

Young people from across Nuneaton and Bedworth worked with the local charity, Mercurial Arts, the Borough Council and English Heritage, to create their own unique listing system and identify and record the buildings and sites important to them.

Image icon showing simple outline of traditional tools

Projects

Revival of Ancient Crafts

Young people with learning disabilities practiced a variety of ancient crafts and shared new skills with their wider local community through a traditional fair.

Young people researching the heritage of boxing

Projects

Tribal: a cultural history of boxing in the East End

Young people explored the heritage of boxing in London's East End, including the social impact on the local community and its relationship to gangs and crime, ethnic identity and the entertainment scene.

Craven's Part in the Great War

Projects

Craven's Part in the Great War

This project was based on an idea taken from an original book, published by the Craven Herald in 1920, commemorating every soldier from the Craven District who fell in the First World War.

Line drawing of a tree

Projects

Heaton's Woodland Heritage

The wider community was involved in this project to uncover the natural and archaeological heritage of Heaton Woods, an area of ancient semi-natural woodland.

DBBC students researching Bolton soldiers who had died in the Gallipoli campaign
DBBC students researching Bolton soldiers who had died in the Gallipoli campaign

Projects

Tracing your roots back to Gallipoli

Twenty young people, aged 14-19, researched the lives of Bolton soldiers who had died during the 1915 Gallipoli campaign.

If you query is regarding our application portal, please contact our support team.