£20million awarded to six projects that connect people with natural heritage
Thriving natural heritage is not only good for the environment, but getting out into nature also improves people’s mental health. The added benefit is that when we explore our local green spaces and get involved in nature projects, we build connections with our community, too.
The inspiring projects we funded at our June committee meetings will not only protect the environment and save heritage, but they’ll also provide opportunities for people to come together, care for nature where they live and learn new skills.
“Each of these inspiring projects is... working to promote the wellbeing benefits of vital green places to reinvigorate and nurture a resilient future for people and our natural environment.”
Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive, The National Lottery Heritage Fund
Explore our latest funded projects
Nurturing Natural Connections, North Lanarkshire
We’ve awarded £2.6m to the Scottish Wildlife Trust to manage more than 330 hectares of native woodland, plant over 2,000 trees and enhance wildflower meadows and waterways in Cumbernauld. In the process, this five-year partnership project will share the wellbeing benefits of urban green spaces with over 6,000 members of the community.
Tracy Lambert, Cumbernauld Living Landscape Project Manager, said: “Although Cumbernauld is home to some incredible wildlife, much is in poor condition and many people are unaware of the beauty right on their doorstep. For over 10 years, we’ve worked alongside local communities to restore our greenspaces, and we’re excited to begin our next chapter with Nurturing Natural Connections.”
Birmingham Botanical Gardens
In the West Midlands, we’ve awarded £9m to get the community involved in the restoration of the Botanical Garden’s Grade II* listed glasshouse and the redisplay of its living collection of over 30,000 plants.
The project will increase access to the gardens and collections, and expects to involve over 22,000 people through events, workshops and volunteer opportunities, as well as via a range of online resources.
Sue Beardsmore, Chair of Birmingham Botanical Gardens, said: “As we approach our bicentenary, we can now ensure that Birmingham Botanical Gardens, the unique Living Collection and tangible and intangible heritage of this ‘miracle green space’ can be researched, shared and enjoyed by everyone for the next 200 years.”
Landscape Connections: North Pennines, County Durham
We’ve awarded £654,000 in development funding ahead of a potential delivery grant of up to £9.35m to allow The North Pennines National Landscape – a UNESCO Global Geopark – to develop plans for a long-term Landscape Connections initiative.
The project will re-connect important habitats and support 250 farmers to expand nature-friendly practices and boost the sustainability of their businesses.
Part of our funding will be used for a small grants scheme to encourage local communities to engage with the farms – in some cases, for the first time.
Chris Woodley-Stewart, Director of the North Pennines National Landscape partnership, said: “Working collectively with groups of farmers, we’re not only increasing the landscape-scale impact of high nature-value farming, we’re also pooling skills and experience to develop a stronger and more resilient farming sector.”
Connecting communities to green spaces
Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “Each of these inspiring projects demonstrates a commitment to supporting greater inclusion, diversity and access to nature, and each is working to promote the wellbeing benefits of vital green places to reinvigorate and nurture a resilient future for people and our natural environment.”
Bringing the total investment to £20m, other projects in this latest round of awards that are connecting people to nature, as well as protecting built heritage, include:
- Welsh Wildlife Centre, Pembrokeshire: £2.2m to improve a 30-year-old building’s accessibility, make it energy efficient and create opportunities for engaging a wider audience.
- Woodoaks Farm, Hertfordshire: £1.8m to repair and extend the 16th-century Grade II listed Black Barn, transforming it into a new hub for the community.
- The Food Museum, Suffolk: £3.9m to restore three historic buildings, which will help the museum attract more visitors. It will also partner with local communities to make sure its programme focuses on issues they care about.
Get funding for your project
If you’re interested in helping people connect with natural heritage, get inspired by browsing through our landscape, parks and nature projects.
