Industrial, maritime and transport

Celebrating the innovative buildings, transport and technology that helped shape the modern world.

Since 1994 we have awarded over £630million to more than 1,600 industrial, maritime and transport projects across the UK.

We want to help more people conserve their local industrial heritage and pass on skills to younger generations.

What do we support?

Projects we fund include:

printing presses
pumping engines
windmills
historic ships
locomotives
natural landscapes transformed by industry

Project ideas

Our funding could help people:

uncover and record people’s memories of our industrial past
give a disused site a new purpose
restore and maintain operating machinery
reveal the history of industry in your area
explore the nation's network of canals
provide staffed visitor facilities and learning resources
help young people learn new skills and care for their heritage

See the stories and projects below for more inspiration.

How to get funding

If you have an idea for a project, we would love to hear from you.

Explore our available funding

A steam locomotive pulls into a station surrounded by daffodils while the driver leans out of the engine's cab

TR Locomotive No.1 'Talyllyn'. Credit: Luke Ryan.

News

Our £3.7million investment is helping Talyllyn Railway preserve treasured transport heritage

Thanks to National Lottery players, the iconic North Wales railway will continue to inspire and connect people for generations to come.

14/01/2026

Two young people running through the museum.

Visitors at Windermere Jetty Museum, which is offering free entry as part of the week. Credit: Tom Arran.

News

Special offers and free entry to heritage attractions this spring

National Lottery Open Week is running from Saturday 7 to Sunday 15 March 2026, with hundreds of heritage venues getting involved.

24/02/2026

A wooden model of the HMS Erebus, a 19th-century ship with three masts

A model of HMS Erebus. Credit: Pembroke Dock Heritage Trust.

Projects

Bringing the 200-year story of HMS Erebus back to Pembrokeshire

04/02/2026

Artefacts from the ill-fated polar exploration vessel will be displayed for the first time at the ship’s birthplace at Pembroke Dock.

13/01/2026

Three people stand in front of a steam train with the Heritage Fund acknowledgment stamp on the front

Talyllyn Railway. Credit: Nathan Spence, 2026.

Projects

Building the future of Talyllyn Railway

14/01/2026

Talyllyn is protecting much-loved industrial heritage and strengthening a volunteer movement that pioneered railway preservation.

08/09/2022

A view across docklands in Belfast at sunset, with large industrial and cruise ships docked beneath historic cranes.

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.

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.

11/12/2025

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.

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.

Two people stand in a garden of flowers in front of an interpretation sign

Volunteers at the Railworld Wildlife Haven. Credit: Railworld Wildlife Haven.

Stories

Case study: Railworld Wildlife Haven’s journey to an award-winning attraction

The joint winner of the Sustainable Project of the Year prize at the Museums + Heritage Awards 2025 shares how they transformed derelict land into a thriving green space.

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

21/11/2025

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

07/03/2023

A remote, contemporary bird-watching tower in the middle of vast wetlands. Across a wooden causeway, two birdwatchers depart the tower.

Forsinard Flows Nature Reserve, in the Flow Country UNESCO World Heritage Site, Scotland. Photo: Euan Myles / RSPB.

News

80 years of UNESCO: how our funding protects globally important heritage sites

Thanks to the support of National Lottery players, we’ve invested more than £1billion in heritage projects of all shapes and sizes throughout the UK’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Biospheres and Geoparks.

14/11/2025

A group of smiling people, holding a blue Heritage Fund roundel, stand between the canal and the historic wharf building behind them.

Community members gather on the wharf to celebrate the transformational funding. Photo: The Wharf Marple CIC.

Projects

Transforming Marple's canal-side warehouse into a community heritage centre

10/11/2025

A renovation project will breathe new life into a much-loved historic building, sharing the history of canal transport in the Greater Manchester town.

28/11/2023