We have engaged with over 13,000 people all around the UK, including National Lottery players and heritage organisations, on our priorities for the next five years as the UK’s biggest funder of heritage.

Among the views gathered were widespread support for the breadth of heritage work we support. There was also a consistent call for more grant-making decisons to be taken on a local basis.

Other key elements of our new approach include:

• a major focus on nature, communities, and on ensuring everyone is able to enjoy heritage – three top priorities for people who responded to our consultation
• simpler, streamlined and more efficient funding
• new models of investment, moving beyond grants to include loans and partnerships, designed to attract others to invest money alongside the National Lottery
• more support for commercial, sustainable approaches to tackling heritage that’s in danger of being lost
• investment and support to help heritage organisations be more financially sustainable
• a requirement for every heritage project that receives funding to be environmentally friendly
• more funding and support for the most under-funded and deprived communities in Neath Port Talbot and Rhondda Cynon Taff
• continued support for large-scale, iconic projects over £5million

A new look

These plans coincide with a brand new look for our organisation. A fresh new identity and name – The National Lottery Heritage Fund – is designed to help players of the National Lottery better understand the difference they make when they buy a ticket.

This move underlines ambitions to see returns to good causes grow.

Greater support

In Wales two areas have been identified as having been underfunded and with high levels of deprivation, Neath Port Talbot and Rhondda Cynon Taff. They will now receive greater support to develop their applications and additional funding will be made available to help projects in those areas.

Since our formation, we have distributed close to £400m in Wales to over 2,600 projects.

And our research has found that National Lottery players are keen to know more about how their money is used, so in future every organisation awarded funding will be asked to think about how National Lottery players will be thanked, acknowledged and invited to participate in their work.