1. Home
  2. What Is Heritage?
  3. Industrial, maritime and transport

View as PDF

Industrial, maritime and transport

Industrial, maritime and transport

Three people stand inside a factory casting a large bell. Molten metal pours from a container held in the air by a hoist
Casting a bell at Taylor's Bellfoundry. Photo: Katelyn Collins.
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
The Command of the Oceans new building
The Command of the Oceans new building

Projects

Command of the Oceans

Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust led on a project to redevelop and transform the visitor experience at the Historic Dockyard.

A man teaches a young woman
A volunteer helps a young person learn engineering skills

Projects

Blyth's Ship Building Heritage

In just four years, Blyth Tall Ship grew from a germ of an idea and a patch of derelict quayside land, to an inspiring start-up business supporting boatbuilding skills.

Abbeydale Hamlet, Sheffield
Abbeydale Hamlet, Sheffield

Projects

Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet - A Working and Sustainable Future

Sheffield’s long association with industry and trades is epitomised at the important site of Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet. The site has been restored to its former glory with improved interactive interpretation to share its fascinating story more widely.

Inside the SS Nomadic

Projects

SS Nomadic & Hamilton dock development

SS Nomadic, the tender vessel to the Titanic and the last remaining White Star Line ship in the world, was restored and opened as a visitor attraction in the Titanic Quarter in Belfast.

Roedd Dyffryn Ogwr yn cael ei adnabod fel cymuned fwyngloddio ar un adeg
Roedd Dyffryn Ogwr yn cael ei adnabod fel cymuned fwyngloddio ar un adeg

News

Valley youngsters save their mining heritage

A project telling the story of a South Wales valley’s mining heritage has been awarded £49,700 by the National Lottery.
Mining Institute
Bydd neuadd yn Sefydliad Mwyngloddio, yn cael ei adnewyddu

News

Mining Institute hits gold

A total of £8.6million in National Lottery grants will preserve UK’s industrial heritage, from Newcastle’s Mining Institute to Sherwood Forest’s industrial past
Ros a Richard Bellamy yn cynorthwyo wrth gwblhau arddangosfa newydd.
Ros a Richard yn paratoi Sain Ffagan ar gyfer y dyfodol

News

Getting up close and personal with Welsh history at St Fagans

During a recent visit to St Fagans National Museum of History, HLF Chief Executive Ros Kerslake and the Head of HLF in Wales, Richard Bellamy, helped put some finishing touches to a new display.

If you query is regarding our application portal, please contact our support team.