£30million awarded to 15 heritage projects ahead of our 30th birthday

09/10/2024

A couple of school children holding large flags in an empty building, accompanied by a giant puppet

Former dock worker Leslie Morgan (centre) and children from the Gateway Learning Academy schools (waving flags representing the Windrush generation), alongside Tilbury port's 16ft docker puppet, celebrate the Tilbury Riverside Station grant in the building that will be transformed into a creative community hub.

In our latest round of funding decisions, we’ve given grants to transform a historic port, boost the habitat of freshwater pearl mussels, save a pub, revitalise a park and more.

We’re just over a month away from celebrating our – and The National Lottery’s – 30^th birthday on 19 November. But first, we’re celebrating a new batch of heritage projects we’ve funded across the UK.

They will benefit not just heritage, but individuals, communities and the environment. Together, the 15 projects will:

create 87 jobs and apprenticeships
support over 620 volunteering opportunities
plant more than 100,000 trees
redevelop over 1,000,000m-square of land, from riverscapes to castle grounds

Grants for people and nature

These wonderful projects demonstrate the astonishing breadth of heritage that people value and want to pass onto future generations.
Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive of The National Lottery Heritage Fund

The newly funded projects are:

Crystal Palace Park, London (awarded £4,696,649) will restore its famous dinosaur sculptures and revitalise the park’s 200acres of green space.

Tilbury Riverside Station, Essex (£4,478,310) will create a community hub, including artists’ studios and a cafe, in a former station building at the port where the Empire Windrush docked in 1948.

Project Tullie: Breaking Down Barriers, Carlisle (£4,453,582) will transform the Tullie House Museum into an innovative and sustainable cultural hub that represents its local communities.

Whose Hoo, Kent (£2,943,041) will plant disease resistant elm trees and hedgerows, increasing biodiversity and providing social opportunities for the community.

Ripon Museums: Inspiration for a Fairer Future, North Yorkshire (£2,573,493) will carry out essential repairs to its Victorian workhouse building and improve management of its collections, which tell the history of poverty, crime, fairness and justice.

A teacher in period costume standing at a blackboard, demonstrating teaching visiting students at a heritage museum — Learning the history of poverty, crime, fairness and justice at Ripon Museums.

Reimagining and Revitalising Watford’s Museum and Heritage Service, Hertfordshire (£2,454,347) will support the relocation of the museum into the refurbished Grade II listed Town Hall to better meet local communities’ needs.

Riverwoods: A Blueprint for Riparian Woodland Recovery, across Scotland (£1,834,114) will improve woodlands and boost biodiversity in rivers and streams to support species including mussels and salmon.

Trees with autumn leaves surrounding a small waterfall cascading into a river — Corra Linn, part of the Riverwoods: A Blueprint for Riparian Woodland Recovery project. Credit: Jennifer Porteous.

Downs to the Sea: Recovery & Resilience in Wetland Habitats, Chichester (£1,693,187) will restore wetlands and ponds, minimising the impact of drought and boosting biodiversity.

Exmoor Pioneers: Past, Present and Future (£1,227,803) will sustain the local landscape, plant trees, organise community digs and conserve vulnerable heritage.

Menter y Plu, Llanystumdwy (£1,055,089) will transform a 200-year-old village pub into a community hub tackling social isolation and mental ill health.

Catalyst Science Discovery Centre and Museum: The Synergy Project, Cheshire (£1,009,930) will explore the significance of the local chemical industry’s heritage and its influence on the world today.

Reimagining Margam Castle, Port Talbot (£900,030) will restore the Tudor Gothic mansion, improving sustainability and accessibility and creating new mixed-use public spaces.

A group of people of different ages walking up a path towards a castle-style building — Visitors at Margam Castle. Credit: Robert Melen.

Making Available the Heritage of All Saints, Staffordshire (£558,268) will conserve a number of the church’s heritage assets including 12th century stained glass windows.

The Nerve Centre: Power Plants, Belfast(£255,172) will use creativity to explore the generation and use of power, the depletion of native plant species and biodiversity, and the need to protect and repair our natural heritage.

Reading, Writing, Restoration: Bushmills' Old School Project, Northern Ireland (£29,000) will repair and extend the school building to create new community and visitor space.

The breadth of heritage

Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “These wonderful projects demonstrate the astonishing breadth of heritage that people value and want to pass onto future generations.

“I cannot wait to see what the future brings as we work together to deliver our vision for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future.”

Since 1994, we’ve awarded more than £8.6billion raised by National Lottery players to over 47,000 heritage projects across the UK. Through our Heritage 2033 strategy, we expect to invest a further £3.6bn over the next 10 years.