1. Home
  2. What Is Heritage?
  3. Areas, buildings and monuments

View as PDF

Areas, buildings and monuments

Areas, buildings and monuments

exterior view of a large norman castle in the middle of a city
We've supported Norwich Castle's transformation with £13million in funding.
Safeguarding our historic buildings, monuments and archaeology for future generations.

Thanks to National Lottery players, since 1994 we have awarded £3.6billion to 10,800 area, historic building and monument projects across the UK. See stories from projects we've funded below.

We provide grants for heritage projects from £10,000–£10million to ensure that heritage is valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future.

These projects can help to sustain jobs, support economic growth and protect heritage at risk. They can also bolster local pride, nurture traditional craft skills and help communities enjoy and make use of the places they care about.

What do we support?

Projects we fund include:

  • investment in places of worship
  • conservation and repairs to historic buildings and places
  • finding appropriate new uses for historic buildings
  • community archaeology projects

Places of worship

Places of worship are among the UK’s oldest and most cherished historic buildings. We want to help congregations become truly resilient and their buildings genuinely sustainable.

Places of worship we fund

Project ideas

Our funding could help people:

  • repair and transform a historic building at the heart of their community
  • help volunteers learn building conservation skills
  • rescue a building on a Buildings at Risk register
  • undertake a community archaeology project
  • regenerate a historic town centre or high street
  • look after and learn about a local war memorial

How to get funding

Our National Lottery Heritage Grants programme is open for applications.

Find out more and apply
A view looking up at the red brick facade and central clocktower of the Keelmen's Hospital.
More than three centuries since its founding, the Keelmen's Hospital will once again provide housing to the people of Newcastle. Photo: Steve Brock.

Projects

Historic Newcastle almshouse to be transformed into affordable housing

Our £4.6million grant will secure the future of the iconic Keelmen’s Hospital, the city’s most at-risk building.

De La Warr Pavilion on the coast.
Sitting on the Bexhill seafront, the Pavilion welcomes more than 350,000 visitors each year. Credit: Burst Photos.

Projects

An icon for everyone: restoring the De La Warr Pavilion

After decades of exposure to the coastal environment, the Grade I listed building is undergoing urgent conservation work to protect it for future generations.

Celebrating dance at Newham Heritage Month
Newham Heritage Month events celebrated the intangible cultural heritage of the borough's communities including Bharatnatham dance. Credit: K J Martin.

News

Celebrating the stories of London boroughs

From Kingston to Barnet, we’ve supported communities across the area to connect with the diverse heritage on their doorstep.
Holy Trinity Church in the centre of Hastings.
The project aims to remove the building from Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register. Credit: Holy Trinity Hastings Church.

Projects

Saving Holy Trinity Hastings: a gothic landmark for the community

Our funding is restoring a Grade II* listed church, preserving its heritage and transforming it into a space for all.

A view of the now-destroyed tree at Sycamore Gap on Hadrian's Wall.
Preventing acts of criminal damage to heritage sites is a critical concern. Photo: Gordon Leggett, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Stories

Crime, AI and innovation: what our heritage sector surveys revealed in 2025

Our new UK Heritage Pulse research investigates the impact of crime on heritage settings. It’s the latest insight from our conversations to understand the views and experiences of our sector.
Visitors stand in the courtyard of the Old Black Lion.
The Old Black Lion will offer a traditional welcome to visitors.

Projects

Saving Northampton’s Old Black Lion

An ambitious repair project has successfully preserved the extraordinary heritage of one of Northampton’s oldest pubs.

Young volunteers at the wheel of a ship out at sea on a sunny day.
Blyth Tall Ship has created inspiring volunteer opportunities in the north east. Photo: Colin McLean Photography.

Stories

Grantee Q&A: the importance of collaborating, learning and adapting

We asked grantees from the Highlands to the Midlands to share their reflections and advice on the different stages of their journey with us – from application, through delivery, to evaluation.
The Pool of Bethesda (1736) and The Good Samaritan (1737) on the Hogarth stair.
The characters portrayed in The Pool of Bethesda are thought to be patients from the hospital, many of whose conditions are recognisable to the trained eye. Credit: David Parry.

Projects

Revealing a hidden treasure: Barts North Wing opens to the public

This transformational project is welcoming visitors to a hidden part of London’s oldest working hospital for the first time.

Exterior of Great Malvern Priory including Gothic tower
We're supporting conservation work to the Grade I listed Great Malvern Priory. Credit: Daderot, Wikimedia Commons.

Projects

Protecting at-risk heritage at Great Malvern Priory

Our funding will conserve the priory’s internationally significant collection of stained glass, carry out essential repairs to the historic building and improve visitor facilities.

Three people wearing high vis jackets stand in front of a derelict historic building in a post-industrial landscape, formerly a shipyard.
Exploring Govan Graving Docks with Deirdre Gaughan, Chair of the Central Govan Action Plan, Andy Milne from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Cllr. Ricky Bell, Deputy Leader of Glasgow City Council and Govan Ward councillor. Photo: Peter Devlin.

Projects

A bright future for the Govan Heritage project

We're supporting the next phase of heritage-inspired regeneration in one of Scotland’s most historically significant yet economically disadvantaged urban areas.

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