The Preston Guild plays an important role in the history of the city, dating back to 1179, it is the only Guild still celebrated in the UK and as such is unique. The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) is working with Preston Council to create opportunities for more people to get involved in exploring and enjoying Preston’s heritage.

As part of Preston Guild 2012, HLF offered 15 groups grants up to £10,000 each to enable them to run projects which contributed to activities throughout the Guild year of 2012 by celebrating or exploring an aspect of Preston’s history and heritage.

The projects are encouraged to get people working together by creating new partnerships. Each of the projects chosen will be linked to one of the Guild’s several themes; Welcome Guild, People’s Guild, International Guild, Creative Guild and Green Guild.

The festival runs from 31 Aug to 9 Sep 2012. To find out more the Preston Guild 2012 official record is now available from the Preston City Council website.