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Museums, libraries and archives

Museums, libraries and archives

Museums, libraries and archives
Museums, libraries and archives tell the stories of our cultural heritage.

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, browse projects we've funded, or explore our recent Dynamic Collections campaign.

How to get funding

Our National Lottery Heritage Grants programme is open for applications.

Find out more and apply
A view of the Discovering Preston gallery at the refurbished Harris, displaying items from the museum's collection.
The museum's collections can be explored via new displays. Photo: The Harris.

Projects

Revitalising The Harris for the audiences of today

Our support has enabled Preston’s leading museum to deliver essential repairs, transform its visitor facilities and plan for a bright future.

A young woman looks at a sculpture by Barbara Hepworth.
The sculpture has been secured for the public to enjoy. Photo: Betty Saunders.

Projects

Rare Barbara Hepworth sculpture saved for the UK

Thanks to our support and a successful public appeal, The Hepworth Wakefield has acquired a rare work by the artist, secured for the public to enjoy in her hometown.

A space in the open store, containing a vintage motorcycle and pram.
The rationalised collection will be housed in a new Open Store. Photo: Preston Park Museum / Stockton Borough Council.

Projects

Creating space: rationalising Preston Park Museum

Our support has helped Stockton’s local museum declutter its collection and involve the community in decision making about its future.

Two people bending down to look at a museum display about Duleep Singh
Visitors viewing the museum's new displays on Duleep Singh and his family. Credit: Norfolk Museums Service (Ancient House).

Stories

Celebrating a Norfolk museum’s Punjabi roots

Through community consultation and academic partnerships Thetford’s Ancient House is digging deeper into the history of its founding family.
A group of young boys sneak a view through gaps in a Belfast peace wall.
Peacelines I. Photo: Frankie Quinn. Shared with permission of Belfast Archive Project.

Projects

How collaboration helped Belfast Archive Project reach new audiences

Through working with national partners, a team of dedicated volunteers has unearthed remarkable photographic treasures documenting the history of Northern Ireland.

A telephone cable cabinet decorated in blue and yellow, with the slogan 'We All Love Leeds'.
The most ordinary street furniture can be an opportunity to celebrate your city's sporting triumphs. Credit: Reece Leung / Leeds Museums and Galleries

Projects

How oral histories can capture sporting heritage and bring communities together

Talking to the people of Leeds about their shared love of everything from football to table tennis has made a vital contribution to the city’s collections.

Children in a museum
Children enjoying an exhibition at Seven Stories, Newcastle upon Tyne

Hub

Dynamic Collections

Our campaign supported collecting organisations across the UK to become more inclusive and resilient with a focus on engagement, re-interpretation and collections management.
Two people are in a costume room and are looking down at a pattern on a cutting table. In the background are images of costumes, costumes on mannequins and rolls of fabric stacked on shelves
Costumes will undergo condition surveys, be catalogued and preserved and feature in a costume exhibition. Credit: Carrie Davenport / Lyric Theatre.

Projects

Lyric Theatre celebrates 75 years of culture, community and creativity

The Lyric Theatre in Belfast is embarking on a three-year heritage project to share its 75-year history and make it more accessible to audiences, researchers and the wider community.

People taking part in an audio heritage tour in Brighton
Audio heritage tour in Brighton. Credit: Kaleidoshoots / Marlborough Productions.

Projects

Queer Heritage South: Live Archive Brighton & Hove

The project will build a digital archive and bring to life stories from the LGBTQ+ community.

A public square with buildings next to it on the edge of a wide river, the city on the other side of the river is connected by a large white bridge
DNA Museum Site at Ebrington. Credit: The National Lottery Heritage Fund / Cinematic Sky.

Projects

DNA Museum to celebrate North West’s rich heritage

A new museum that will explore the history and culture of Derry/Londonderry and its connection to the North Atlantic is now under construction.

Architectural drawing of a stone and timber clad building showing how the historic stableblock will look when developed into The Gardeners' House
Architectural drawing of The Gardeners' House. Credit: The Gardeners' House.

Projects

The Gardeners' House: connecting people with nature

A new green community heritage hub has opened in Penzance, housing 200 years of Cornwall’s natural heritage and a sensory garden.

A small train billowing steam in the yard of the museum buildings
The yard at Amgueddfa Lechi Cymru. Credit: Amgueddfa Cymru.

Projects

Unlocking the living gateway to Wales' slate story

Amgueddfa Lechi Cymru, The National Slate Museum, in Llanberis is being transformed through a £12million grant, securing its future at the heart of the UNESCO World Heritage slate landscape.

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