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Areas of Focus

Areas of Focus

Child playing on a beach with families attending a beach scavenger hunt
A seashore scavenger hunt at Tendering, one of our Areas of Focus
We are supporting our Areas of Focus across the UK by increasing access to our funding, and helping to deliver positive outcomes through their local heritage.

What is an Area of Focus?

In our Strategic Funding Framework 2019–2024, we set out ambitions to provide targeted support to 13 places – ‘Areas of Focus’ – that have historically received lower levels of investment from us, and displayed the highest evidence of need based on data from the Index of Multiple Deprivation.

This was in response to National Lottery player consultation, which highlighted a desire to see money raised by The National Lottery targeted towards communities who would benefit the most from funding. 

We identified 13 Areas of Focus that have the potential to engage people with heritage for the first time:

  • Brent (London & South)
  • Corby (Midlands & East)
  • Enfield (London & South)
  • Knowsley (North of England)
  • Inverclyde (Scotland)
  • Luton (Midlands & East)
  • Newham (London & South)
  • North-East Lincolnshire (North of England)
  • North Lanarkshire (Scotland)
  • Neath Port Talbot (Wales)
  • Rhondda Cynon Taff (Wales)
  • Tendring (London & South)
  • Walsall (Midlands & East)

Our work in these areas

Our work is guided by a vision for heritage to support thriving places and communities.

Since 2019, our teams have been working with a wide range of stakeholders in the 13 areas – from Local Authorities, to heritage, community and voluntary sector organisations – to identify the best way to deliver positive outcomes through heritage.

In practice, this has included a range of activities to support local organisations with access to our funding:

  • partnership working, including with other funders
  • community and micro-grants schemes
  • the ability to solicit or fast-track grant applications where a time-limited opportunity presents itself, such as significant government or other partnership funding
  • commissioning specialist support or capacity building for organisations delivering heritage projects for the first time

At the midpoint of our Strategic Funding Framework, we have distributed around £18million to our 13 Areas of Focus, through The National Lottery and government funding.

Looking to the future

We will continue to seek opportunities to engage, invest and celebrate in the heritage of these places. 

Discover more of the work we are doing in our Areas of Focus below. 

Six people posing for a picture in front of a Jazz music archive, including posters and frames
Engagement Manager Dawn Bainbridge (centre) on the job – visiting a jazz archive project

Blogs

Luton: A vibrant, diverse town with a rich heritage identity

Our Engagement Manager for England, Midlands & East, Dawn Bainbridge, tells us about our work and investment into Luton’s heritage – one of our 13 Areas of Focus.
Children and adults dancing and smiling
Pakiki Theatre group.

Projects

Exploring Newham’s Olympics heritage

Pakiki Theatre’s Who wants to be an Olympian? project will explore the sporting heritage of the Olympics and Paralympics with young people in Newham.

Person from Newham Music Trust performing
Credit: Newham Music Trust

Projects

The Olympics 2012 Legacy Songbook

Newham Music Trust will create a music programme to help Newham’s schools explore the positive impact London 2012 had on the area.

People dancing as part of a cultural festival at the Birmingham Commonwealth games

Videos

What do we mean by heritage?

If you need inspiration for your heritage project idea, our team in the Midlands & East has set out to answer: ‘what exactly is heritage?’
Crowd of people under a rust-coloured metal arch, which reads Cody Dock.
Volunteers at Cody Dock

Projects

GRCF2020 Cody Dock's Green Recovery Challenge

Gasworks Dock Partnership is regenerating Cody Dock in the lower Lea River to transform it in a vital wildlife corridor in Newham, East London.

Photoshoot with giant bubbles and three people

Publications

Strategic Funding Framework 2019–2024

This Strategic Funding Framework for 2019–2024 sets out our vision and the principles that will guide our National Lottery investment for the next five years.