Museums, libraries and archives

Through preservation, exhibition and community engagement, they can bring collections, places and ideas to life. They help us to understand culture, science and history, and give us a sense of place, identity and community.
Thanks to National Lottery players, since 1994 we have awarded £2.5billion to 6,000 museum, library, archive and collection-based projects across the UK. See stories from projects we've funded below.
What do we support?
We provide grants for heritage projects from £10,000–£10million for projects led by or featuring museums, libraries and archives.
Our funding supports institutions large and small, including:
- national, local authority and independent museums, libraries and archives
- historic libraries
- community archives and oral history collections
- institutions with heritage collections
Project ideas
Our funding could help people:
- create exciting new exhibition and learning spaces
- attract new and more diverse audiences
- acquire new items and develop collections
- improve organisational resilience
For more inspiration, see the stories below or browse projects we've funded.
How to get funding
Our National Lottery Heritage Grants programme is open for applications.

Projects
How oral histories can capture sporting heritage and bring communities together
Talking to the people of Leeds about their shared love of everything from football to table tennis has made a vital contribution to the city’s collections.

Hub
Dynamic Collections

Videos
Dynamic Collections: a visit to Craven Museum

Projects
Voices Through Time: The Story of Care
Hundreds of volunteers are helping children’s charity Coram digitise and share its historic archive online.

Projects
Touching stitches: embroidery access for the blind
This innovative project explored ways to enable blind and partially sighted people to access the Edinburgh College of Art’s historic textile collection, which spans over three centuries.

News
Putting inclusion, access and participation at the heart of the National Science and Media Museum

Projects
Unlocking the living gateway to Wales' slate story
Amgueddfa Lechi Cymru, The National Slate Museum, in Llanberis is being transformed through a £12million grant, securing its future at the heart of the UNESCO World Heritage slate landscape.

Projects
How collaboration helped Belfast Archive Project reach new audiences
Through working with national partners, a team of dedicated volunteers has unearthed remarkable photographic treasures documenting the history of Northern Ireland.

Projects
Rare self-portrait by William Dobson saved for the UK
With our support, Tate and the National Portrait Gallery have jointly acquired the earliest known work of one of the first great British painters.

News
Winners announced for Sustainable Project of the Year 2025

News
Meet the future game changers of heritage

Projects
Ready for take off: the future of the Royal Air Force Museum
An ambitious project is underway to expand and redefine one of the UK’s biggest military museums.

Projects
Creating a new home for Royal Marines heritage
Thanks to National Lottery players, Portsmouth’s historic Boathouse 6 will be reimagined as the first purpose-built home for a nationally important military collection.

News
Royal Air Force and Royal Marines heritage to benefit from £13.7million investment

News
Museum collections will tour the UK in 40 unique exhibitions

Projects
Art Fund: Going Places
A new UK-wide programme to engage and involve audiences in museum collections through collaborative touring exhibitions and public programmes.

Projects
Launching a new era for Discovery in Dundee
In 1901, RRS Discovery carried Scott of the Antarctic toward the South Pole. Today, transformative redevelopment plans will open up new frontiers for visitors to its Tayside home.