Community heritage
Celebrating community heritage can help people come together, feel pride in where they live and save stories and traditions.
Since 1994 we have awarded £460million to more than 24,100 community and cultural heritage projects across the UK.
What do we support?
We fund projects that are researching, conserving and celebrating the heritage of a community or place.
These projects could include lots of types of heritage, such as people celebrating living customs or improving a historic green space. What's most important is that the project involves and benefits the community.
Project ideas
Our funding could help people:
- research the impact of a historical event on their town, and share their findings through displays, talks and online
- investigate the names on a war memorial
- crowdsource documents and photographs linked to the LGBTQ+ community, creating an online archive and exhibition
- set up an audio trail around a range of buildings, parks and monuments in a town
- enable a youth group to research their local history and create an animated film about their learnings
For more inspiration, see the stories below or browse projects we've funded.
How to get funding
If you have an idea for a project, we would love to hear from you.
News
£3.5million National Lottery boost spells plain sailing for historic north Wales harbour town
HLF has awarded nearly £3.5million to regenerate the former slate quay on Caernarfon waterfront, transforming it into a vibrant shopping and tourist hotspot fit for the craftsmen of today.
News
Caernarfon’s Quay to Success
North Wales harbour town set for a prosperous voyage thanks to £3.5million National Lottery boost.
News
Manchester's invited to a Big Fat Asian Wedding!
Run by the charity Community on Solid Ground (COSG), the ‘Big Fat Asian Wedding’ project will introduce people all of ages, faiths and backgrounds to South Asian culture by researching the Islamic Nikah, or marriage ceremony, from the 1940s to the present day. The project aims to improve community
News
National Lottery players ensure the future of Pembroke’s medieval town walls
For the next 800 years Dating back to c. 1280 the walls were built after the outer ward of Pembroke Castle was completed, and now the Pembroke Town Walls Trust want to protect and preserve them for future generations. Modern Pembroke has successfully retained much of its medieval layout and
Blogs
From factory floor to centre stage
Helen Joy reviews ‘Tic Toc: the beginning’ – a musical about the vital role women played in Welsh manufacturing which was made possible thanks to National Lottery players.
Blogs
How the Great Place Scheme will help communities thrive
Wales is launching a Great Place Scheme to put culture at the heart of the local vision and ambition for the community.
News
Heritage and culture at the heart of Wales' great places
£1.5million National Lottery investment to promote a partnership approach to regeneration in Wales.
Blogs
Why do we celebrate LGBT heritage?
HLF Wales Development Manager Stephen Barlow reflects on the importance of celebrating his community's heritage
News
Heritage, but not as we know it
Thanks to National Lottery players, young people across Wales are about to embark on a game-changing project that looks at the past in a whole new light.
News
Wales’s unloved heritage is about to be reclaimed by the next generation
Thanks to National Lottery players, young people across Wales are about to embark on a project that has the power to change what we mean when we talk about heritage.
News
From revolution to regeneration: former industrial powerhouse hits National Lottery jackpot
Thanks to National Lottery players, one of Wales’ most historic towns is in line for a fantastic £6.6million facelift.
News
50 years of conservation areas
Ten run-down Conservation Areas across the UK are to be revived with £17million of National Lottery money.