Museums, libraries and archives

Through preservation, exhibition and community engagement, they can bring collections, places and ideas to life. They help us to understand culture, science and history, and give us a sense of place, identity and community.
Thanks to National Lottery players, since 1994 we have awarded £2.5billion to 6,000 museum, library, archive and collection-based projects across the UK. See stories from projects we've funded below.
What do we support?
We provide grants for heritage projects from £10,000–£10million for projects led by or featuring museums, libraries and archives.
Our funding supports institutions large and small, including:
- national, local authority and independent museums, libraries and archives
- historic libraries
- community archives and oral history collections
- institutions with heritage collections
Project ideas
Our funding could help people:
- create exciting new exhibition and learning spaces
- attract new and more diverse audiences
- acquire new items and develop collections
- improve organisational resilience
For more inspiration, see the stories below or browse projects we've funded.
How to get funding
Our National Lottery Heritage Grants programme is open for applications.

Projects
Childhood at Osborne
Families are now able to step back into the world of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert’s children at Osborne on the Isle of Wight.

Projects
Marking the First World War Centenary at York Castle Museum
The York Museums and Gallery Trust transformed the upper floors of a Grade I listed prison building into exhibition space and introduced an ambitious four year programme about the First World War.

Projects
The Staffordshire Hoard Gallery
Public interest in the Staffordshire Hoard has been unprecedented. A temporary display at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery attracted more than half a million visitors in 12 months.

Projects
Redeveloping the Green Howards Museum
The Green Howards Regimental museum received almost £1million to redevelop its galleries and put on a series of family activities.

Projects
V&A at Dundee
From the architecture of Robert Adam to the fashion of Bill Gibb, Scotland has an outstanding creative heritage stretching back centuries in studio, industrial and technological design.

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.

Projects
Sharing Stories - a people's museum for Daventry
Daventry Town Council oversaw the development of a Grade II listed Georgian town house into a cultural and historical hub for the local community.

Projects
Crime on the homefront: policing Bishop's Stortford during the First World War
The issue of crime on the home front has often been neglected. This project will focus on the impact of the First World War on crime in Bishop's Stortford and surrounding areas.

Projects
Egham Museum Magna Carta 800 Project
Celebrating the 800th anniversary of the sealing of the Magna Carta, this project delivered a programme of activities and events with the local community.

Projects
Roman Sussex: saving a remarkable treasure
Brighton’s Royal Pavilion and Museums used HLF funding to save a rare treasure hoard, building a valuable network for local museums in the process.

Projects
Exploring the sport heritage of Manchester’s Jewish community
The Manchester’s Sporting Jews project explored and celebrated the sporting heritage of the Jewish community in Manchester.

Projects
The Renaissance Globe Project
The Museum of the History of Science in Oxford illuminated the astonishing history of globe-making for thousands of children and families.