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Thriving Places

Thriving Places

People sitting in a sunny park, near a bandstand
Pearson Park in Kingston upon Hull
We are investing in places, not just individual projects, to bring about benefits for people, places and our natural environment.

What we mean by place 

‘Place’ refers to a meaningful location, and definitions vary depending on where you are and who you ask. It could mean a local community, a natural landscape or an entire city.  

How heritage supports thriving places

Heritage plays a unique role in building pride in place by connecting communities and visitors to an area and helping to boost economies.  

Buildings and monuments, landscapes, high streets, parks and nature sites all contribute to a sense of place alongside the stories, memories and experiences we associate with them. 

Our funding for heritage projects  

We welcome applications for heritage projects that take local needs, challenges and opportunities into account by:  

  • considering how the activity you deliver benefits your area
  • valuing the experience and knowledge of your local communities
  • partnering or co-ordinating with other organisations to have a wider impact  

Projects taking this place-based approach can focus on different types of heritage and can include an individual heritage site or a wider area.  

We are delivering strategic initiatives, as part of our Heritage 2033 strategy, that focus on place:  

  • Heritage Places is targeting place-based investment to boost pride in place and connect communities and visitors with heritage, distributing £200million across the UK during Heritage 2033
  • Landscape Connections is investing £150million in around 20 long-term projects boosting nature recovery by supporting Designated Protected Landscapes across the UK and other world-class landscapes in Scotland.  
  • Nature Towns and Cities is a partnership initiative supporting places to improve the quality of, and access to, historic parks and urban green spaces, distributing £15million in 2025 for projects lasting up to three years

See our funding programmes, area-based projects good practice guidance and strategic initiatives pages to find out more.  

Our approach to supporting places  

We fund places, not just projects, by:  

  • valuing the local expertise of our Area and Nation Teams and Committees in our decision-making for grants
  • engaging with a range of organisations and communities across the UK to make connections between priorities and projects
  • delivering our place-based strategic initiatives: Heritage Places, Landscape Connections and Nature Towns and Cities  
  • working with partners and agencies to bring about benefits for places, such as the Architectural Heritage Fund’s Heritage Development Trusts programme 

Discover how heritage can create better places in the project examples below. 

The outside of the 19th-century building with a large stone portico supported by columns
Visitors will be able to better explore the ideas that shaped Manchester and the nation through improved access to the historic book collection. Credit: Andrew Brooks.

Projects

Reuniting Manchester’s Portico Library in a once-in-a-generation project

With a funding boost of £6.4million, Portico Reunited will bring the Grade II* listed building back together for first time in a century.

Inside Dewsbury Arcade, showing original timber shopfronts and a new glazed roof with shoppers walking down the central walkway
The historic shopfronts and glazed roof have been restored and a range of independent businesses occupy the units, with more coming soon. Credit: Kirklees Council.

News

Reopening Dewsbury Arcade as the UK’s first community-run shopping centre

With the help of £4.5million from us, customers are back under its beautifully restored glass and cast-iron roof for the first time in a decade.
Exterior image of St Columb's Hall, a stone building next to a busy city centre street
St Columb’s Hall known as the People’s Hall was built in 1886 mainly using donations from local people. Credit: Lorcan Doherty Photography.

Projects

Securing a sustainable future for the People's Hall

Our investment has helped bring St Columb's Hall back into community ownership and is funding improvements to make it welcoming, accessible and no longer at risk.

the deputy mayor and a group of people in a museum looking at building plans
The Deputy Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council looks at plans for Ballycastle Museum. Credit: Causeway Coast and Glens Museum Services.

News

Seven historic buildings we’re funding to become community hubs

From a cart and wagon shed on the site of the UK’s first war dog school to the oldest building in Britain’s first recorded city, explore recently-funded projects restoring historic spaces as venues for local people and visitors.
shopfronts on restored high street buildings
The restored shopfronts of 2-4 Market Place in Caistor. Credit: Caistor and District Community Trust.

Projects

Bringing new life to Caistor’s market place

We’re helping Caistor and District Community Trust restore derelict historic buildings in the town centre and repurpose them for commercial and community use.

Three people look down over a valley with mountains in the distance
Braemar view. Credit: Cameron Cosgrove

Projects

Cairngorms 2030: people and nature thriving together

We've awarded nearly £12.5million to a transformative project aiming to preserve the UK’s biggest National Park, empowering communities to help nature and improve wellbeing.

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.

Waves crash over a harbour breakwater, a small fishing boat passes a stone light tower
The historic light tower at the entrance to Dunure Harbour. Credit: Eddie Telford.

Projects

Shaping the future of Dunure's heritage

A new project is exploring opportunities to conserve, celebrate and revitalise Dunure's historic assets, supported by South Ayrshire Council and us.

A woman takes part in a blacksmithing workshop, hitting heated metal with a hammer.
The project, alongside regenerating valued historic buildings, will provide heritage skills training for local people. Photo: IceCream Architecture.

Projects

Investing in Ayrshire's heritage, supporting a coastal community

Four key buildings, treasured by the community, are at the centre of a major programme of conservation and placemaking supporting the historic centre of Girvan.

De La Warr Pavilion on the coast.
Sitting on the Bexhill seafront, the Pavilion welcomes more than 350,000 visitors each year. Credit: Burst Photos.

Projects

An icon for everyone: restoring the De La Warr Pavilion

After decades of exposure to the coastal environment, the Grade I listed building is undergoing urgent conservation work to protect it for future generations.

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