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Inclusive heritage

Inclusive heritage

A group of female mountaineers on an expedition in the Himalayas in 1962
We helped the Pinnacle Club mark 100 years since the women's rock-climbing club was founded.
Heritage has a crucial role to play in contributing to a more equal society.

Using money raised by National Lottery players, 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.

What is inclusion?

We believe everyone should be able to benefit from our funding, regardless of age, disability, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, faith, class or income. Explore the stories below to see how organisations have thought creatively about making their projects inclusive.

"Heritage activities bring people and communities together in so many brilliant ways. We are constantly inspired by the many creative ways previously hidden histories are shared, helping us all learn more about each other and our differing personal lives, experiences and memories."

Liz Ellis, Heritage Fund Policy Project Manager for inclusion

The terms we use:

Some of the terms we use include:

  • diverse ethnic communities, or ethnically diverse communities. In Scotland we use MECC (minority ethnic and cultural community). We have revised our usage of the term BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic).
  • LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and other identities)

We use these terms because we believe they are widely understood. Identities can be complex and intersectional, and we are also aware that for many these terms may feel inadequate or limiting. We keep the language we use constantly under review.

What we expect from projects

Inclusion, access and participation is one of four Heritage 2033 investment principles that guide our grant decision making. Every project we fund must take into account how they will support greater inclusion, diversity, access and participation in heritage.

We want to see every project taking steps to reach out to new people, to share heritage beyond their organisation, and to embed inclusive practice as far as they can.

In planning your project, ensure that everyone you work with feels a sense of welcome and belonging. Take a look at our inclusion good practice guidance for advice and ideas.

What you can expect from us

We want to make sure our funding is open and accessible to all. We have set out a plan to meet people’s access needs, from translation services to digital application support.

Read more about the reasonable adjustments we can make for you

Sikh men looking at a book

We support all sorts of projects which explore and celebrate the heritage of diverse ethnic communities.

We also want to help the sector itself to better reflect the UK population.

Heritage of diverse ethnic communities

Group of young people

Since 1994, we are proud to have invested over £60million across the UK in projects working with children and young people. This includes the £10m Kick the Dust programme.

Children and young people

People using wheelchairs at heritage project

Disabled people are under-served in every area of the heritage sector, including people who are learning disabled, people with physical or sensory disabilities or those living with dementia or using mental health services.

We are working in partnership with disabled people to change this unfair situation.

Disability heritage

Young people with rainbow bubble

Since 1994 we've invested over £12million across the UK in sharing stories of LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and other identities) heritage, creativity, activism and much more.

LGBTQ+ heritage

Young people with rainbow bubble

Heritage can build connectedness to where you live, to people around you or to a community online. It can support individual confidence and self-esteem, and provide opportunities to be mentally and physically active.

Heritage can also help us find meaning and purpose in our lives. Both are significant aspects in how we experience wellbeing.

Heritage for wellbeing
Two people of Chinese heritage play a drum in a procession, while people in the background hold placards with photos of Chinese relatives
Ancestral Futures by Eelyn Lee and collaborators, commissioned by Dig Where You Stand. Photo: Anh Do.

Stories

How artists can uncover hidden histories and fill gaps in the archives

South Yorkshire project Dig Where You Stand invited creatives to explore the often overlooked and poorly documented evidence of people from diverse ethnic communities across the area's history.
Domingas Gusmão poses beside a table displaying a bouquet of flowers
The project is capturing the stories of women like Domingas Gusmão, who moved to Dungannon from East Timor. Credit: First Steps Women's Centre.

Projects

Honouring women’s migration stories

First Steps Women’s Centre is recording the experiences of migrant women who have made Mid Ulster their home.

An event at Newham Chinese Association
An event at Newham Chinese Association. Photo: Newham Chinese Association.

Projects

Malaysian Angels of the NHS

Newham Chinese Association are gathering oral histories of 20 Malaysian nurses who arrived to the UK to work for the NHS from the 1950s onwards.

Two cambodian women giving oral history testimony
Two women giving oral history testimony. Photo: SEA Arts.

Projects

Cambodian Recollections

Cambodian people living in the UK shared their memories of their experiences under the 1975-79 Khmer Rouge regime in this oral history project.

A child being shown how to make kimchi

Projects

Kimjang, Making and Sharing Kimchi

The practices of a UNESCO-recognised Korean tradition were recorded and preserved for the future and celebrated with the wider community.

people sit in front of a wall of sticky notes responding to the prompt 'What do museums mean to us?'
The project involved a cross-section of the public; many had not been to a museum in some time. Credit: Birmingham Museums Trust.

Projects

How the Citizens’ Jury shaped the future of Birmingham Museums Trust

28 local people from many different walks of life shared what they want from their museums, and how these institutions can better serve local communities.

Interpretation panels at an exhibition of women's football, with pictures of and text about female players
Eight outdoor and eight indoor exhibitions ran in the host cities spotlighting local footballers through portraits, objects and stories. Credit: National Football Museum.

Projects

Celebrating women's football heritage in England

A community-led project documented and shared never-before-heard experiences of players, their families and fans from the 1970s to the present day.

A women's football team stand together for a group photograph
The pioneering first official England women's national football team alongside manager Eric Worthington at Wembley Stadium in November 1972. Credit: UEFA Women’s EURO 2022/Getty Images.

Projects

Shining a light on the untold experiences of female footballers in England

This project celebrated the history of women's football and the achievements of players from the 1970s to the present day.

in a green space in winter young people carry a tarpaulin filled with branches to a bonfire
Youth Rangers (aged 12-17) learn nature conservation skills and make a difference to the green spaces around Luton. Credit: The Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire.

Projects

Luton nature engagement project creates paid traineeships for young people

The Wilder Luton project is helping local people connect with and care for green spaces in the town and the surrounding chalk hills landscape.

A young person walks through a moorland landscape
Nature recovery and improved facilities are helping this special place flourish for the benefit of both wildlife and people. Credit: National Trust images/Chris Lacey.

Projects

Reconnecting people and nature at Divis and the Black Mountain

In 2004, National Lottery players’ support helped The National Trust purchase Divis and the Black Mountain. Now our £3million grant is restoring its natural habitat and improving access for local communities.

An artist’s impression of an exhibition space in a former synagogue with a balcony and stained-glass windows
Once complete, the centre will host exhibitions and events on Jewish life in Wales. Credit: Neil Richardson, Welsh Jewish Cultural Centre.

Projects

Establishing Wales’ first Jewish cultural centre

An abandoned synagogue in Merthyr Tydfil will open its doors for the first time in two decades as a new hub for Welsh Jewish heritage.

in a film studio a person wearing a hearing aid watches computer monitors
D/deaf people were involved as crew and interviewees in the making of the project's film. Credit: Zebra Access.

Stories

Grantee Q&A: adapting oral history methods for Walsall’s D/deaf community

Bob Marsh, Managing Director at Zebra Access, and Robyn Swannack, Project Manager, offer their reflections and advice on helping a community tell its own stories while accommodating a wide range of access needs.
The exterior of a red brick former synagogue at sunrise
ARK is bringing life back into the former synagogue. Credit: Nathan Jones.

Stories

A Margate building’s journey from synagogue to art centre

Jan Ryan, Director of ARK Cliftonville, shares how the cultural space, based in a former place of worship, is getting the balance right between preserving and celebrating the building's Jewish cultural heritage and adapting it for new uses.
an exhibition space with decorated masks, pictures and labels on the walls
The Beyond Labels exhibition brings together stories and experiences of disabled people in Suffolk. Credit: Simon Lee Photography.

Stories

Suffolk Archives’ inside guide to award-winning community co-creation

The Hold’s latest community engagement on disability history is the result of years of learning from projects and exhibitions that reflect and are driven by local people.

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