Community heritage
Credit: Nigel Roddis
Celebrating community heritage can help people come together, feel pride in where they live and save stories and traditions.
Since 1994 we have awarded over £510million to more than 24,600 community and cultural heritage projects across the UK.
What do we support?
We fund projects that are researching, conserving and celebrating the heritage of a community or place.
These projects could include lots of types of heritage, such as people celebrating living customs or improving a historic green space. What's most important is that the project involves and benefits the community.
Project ideas
Our funding could help people:
- research the impact of a historical event on their town, and share their findings through displays, talks and online
- investigate the names on a war memorial
- crowdsource documents and photographs linked to the LGBTQ+ community, creating an online archive and exhibition
- set up an audio trail around a range of buildings, parks and monuments in a town
- enable a youth group to research their local history and create an animated film about their learnings
For more inspiration, see the stories below or browse projects we've funded.
How to get funding
If you have an idea for a project, we would love to hear from you.
Recording a podcast episode with SWI members Maz Thorn, Janette McKirdy and Sandra MacArthur. Photo: Scottish Women's Institutes.
Stories
Grantee Q&A: preparation is critical to every stage of your heritage project
It’s a big challenge to capture and share over a century of community history. Scottish Women’s Institutes (SWI) CEO Diane Cooper tells us what she’s learned from developing and delivering its unique heritage programme.
The restored pub has become a focus for socialising and a hub of key community facilities. Photo: Ty'n Llan.
Stories
Grantee Q&A: collaboration and contingency key to community project success
Siôn Jones, project manager for the restoration of the Grade II listed Ty’n Llan Tavern near Caernarfon, shares what he’s learned throughout the process – from the importance of meticulous planning to managing the day-to-day surprises of delivery.
The Disabled People’s Archive is preserving moments of protest and community. Credit: The Disabled People's Archive, Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People.
Stories
Access and activism: the archives preserving disabled people’s heritage
Meet two projects in the north of England opening up their archives to shine a spotlight on the fight for disability rights.
Belfast Historic Waterfront at sunset. Photo: Maritime Belfast Trust.
Stories
We're investing in places to bring communities together and unlock the potential of heritage
Explore how our Heritage Places strategic initiative is supporting adaptive, collaborative approaches that meet unique local needs.
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.
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.
Bella from Abbots Cross Primary School won a competition to design the project's logo. Credit: Newtownabbey Arts and Cultural Network.
Projects
Pixels and Podcasts: young people capturing Rathcoole’s community heritage
Newtownabbey Arts and Cultural Network is using digital media to share stories from the Rathcoole estate.
A community project in Airdrie, home of the world's first penalty kick, has supported the development of the Felt Experience Resource Kit. Photo: North Lanarkshire Council.
Stories
Putting people’s memories at the heart of heritage-inspired regeneration
We’ve developed a free resource to help heritage projects to understand their communities' felt experience and how this can shape more effective, considerate decision making and sustainable planning.
The project is supporting those with lived experience of learning disability to share their personal stories. Credit: United Response.
Projects
Our Life Stories: capturing hidden histories of disability
United Response is preserving the heritage of people with learning disabilities through a series of peer-to-peer interviews.
The opening of the new walled garden. Credit: South West College.
Projects
Sharing skills at Enniskillen Workhouse
Workhouse Connect has supported students with special educational needs to connect with one another and learn new skills.
A portrait of Twimukye Mushaka, by photographer Karen Gordon, featured in the project's exhibition highlighting migrant stories in Scotland.
Stories
Grantee Q&A: building a platform for a community's heritage
Nazek Ramadan from Migrant Voice shares her reflections and advice on the different stages of their project’s journey – from the challenges of the application process to the joys of providing amazing opportunities for their community.
Bradford-based dancers, representing a mix of cultures, celebrate the opening of Bradford Arts Centre. Photo: Guzelian Ltd.
Stories
Putting communities at the heart of Bradford
Our support is helping local people across the district tell their stories, celebrate identity and shape a future rooted in pride and belonging.