Cultures and memories

Since 1994 we have awarded £460million to more than 24,100 community and cultural heritage projects across the UK.
What do we support?
We fund projects which help to explore, save and celebrate the traditions, customs, skills and knowledge of different communities.
This cultural heritage is sometimes referred to as intangible or living heritage. This is because it is constantly changing and kept alive when practiced or performed.
We also fund projects which document and share people’s memories. This often involves capturing oral histories and ensuring they are accessible now and in the future.
Project ideas
Our funding could help people:
- research and share oral traditions, such as storytelling or local dialects
- train others in traditional skills and crafts, from dry stone walling and blacksmithing to basket weaving and textile making
- research the origins of culture, such as music, theatre or dance, and create performances influenced by past styles
- share the history and fun of celebrations, festivals or rituals with new audiences, from games and cooking to carnivals and fayres
- capture accounts of traditional knowledge or pass it on, such as woodland management or home remedies
- record the stories of ordinary people through oral histories, for example about growing up, migration or work
- retell people’s memories about a place or event, such as a long-stay hospital, the miners' strikes or the punk movement
How to get funding
If you have an idea for a project, we would love to hear from you.

Projects
Write into the Future - Steps to Sustainability for The Pen Museum
At a time of financial uncertainty, the Birmingham Pen Trade Heritage Association received a grant to help plan for a sustainable future.

Projects
World War One: a Valleys View
Young people and communities from the Welsh Valleys uncovered the experiences of Welsh soldiers during the First World War and created digital animations.

Projects
Securing a sustainable future for Birmingham Conservation Trust
Following decreases in their core funding the Birmingham Conservation Trust (BCT) had to look for new models to secure its future.

Projects
Miners strike 1984-1985: 30 Years On
Thirty years after the 1984-5 miners' strike, North Staffs Miners’ Wives Action Group collected and shared the memories of local people.

Projects
Exploring 100 years of attitudes to mental health
The Mindful Changes project explores the shifts in public perceptions and attitudes towards mental health over the last 100 years.

Projects
Womens' Work: Sharing the stories of Birmingham factory women
Women from Small Heath, Birmingham came together to learn more about the little-known story of female factory workers in the First World War.

Projects
The restoration of the historic Nicholson organ at Upton upon Severn
Restoring the church’s Nicholson organ engaged the whole community in a range of heritage activities.

Projects
Invisible histories from the First World War
Exploring the history of people who objected to fighting in the First World War and telling their stories through an exhibition and educational resources.

Projects
Brothers Behind Bars: HMP Low Moss explores the experiences of the Great War's conscientious objectors
A group of prisoners attending the Learning Centre at HMP Low Moss explored stories of the First World War, and of those incarcerated as conscientious objectors, by using music, art, drama and creative writing.

Projects
Discovering Black heritage in Toxteth, Liverpool
The L8 Untold Project will engage volunteers in uncovering and recording hidden histories of Britain’s oldest Black community.

Projects
'All The Nice Girls' - women in men's roles on stage 1914-1918
First World War LGBT project looking at the lives of women working on stage in male roles.

Projects
No Facebook? OMG! Exploring life before social media
Young people from Fareham researched and curated an exhibition exploring the relationship between technology and teenagers since the 1960s.