Industrial, maritime and transport

Since 1994 we have awarded over £610million to more than 1,500 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.
Projects
Full Cycle: a history of cycling in Forest Gate
This project will look at the cycling history of Forest Gate in Newham – an important cycling epicentre in the late 19th century close to Epping Forest.
Projects
Sir Samuel Kelly Lifeboat commemorated with exhibition space in Donaghadee
Donaghadee Heritage has secured £90,000 to bring the story of the lifeboat and the town's history to life.

Projects
People, Pride and Progress: recording the histories of LGBTQ+ railway workers
Through the collection of real-life stories, this project aims to spotlight the LGBTQ+ community’s contribution to the railways for the first time.

News
Oldest vehicle suspension bridge in the world reopens

Projects
Shefarers: Platforming untold stories of Suffolk’s women maritime workers
Women of the Seven Seas aims to transform a historic sailing barge into a participatory research hub, where ‘Shefarers’ contribute stories of living and working on the water.
Stories
Five tips for more robust and innovative heritage organisations

News
£4.8million funding boost to revive Folkestone Leas Lift

Stories
Case study: SS Great Britain – Voyage to Carbon Neutral

Projects
UNESCO launch a new illustrated map of the UK’s top heritage sites
Designed by Birmingham-based creative cartographer Tom Woolley, the map shows all 58 sites, cities and natural landscapes, helping to bring to life the huge variety of heritage on people’s doorsteps.

News
Rare polar sledge flag used in search for Franklin’s doomed expedition saved for the UK

Stories
Recovery and resilience: advice from a heritage project improving skills and wellbeing

News
From facing collapse to welcoming visitors: the UK’s oldest windmill reopens

News
More than £24million awarded to heritage projects across the UK

Projects
Stockton and Darlington Railway
A state-of-the-art visitor attraction and new community engagement scheme will celebrate this historic railway line.

Projects
New centre for illustration: celebrating Quentin Blake’s 90th birthday
A new development grant brings the Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration one step closer to realising their ambition for a new space, creating a permanent home for illustration in the UK.

Stories
Why you should involve people with lived experience in your heritage project

Videos