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Areas, buildings and monuments

Areas, buildings and monuments

People walking up steps to a castle with turret
Lincoln Castle. Credit: Colin McLean Photography
Safeguarding our historic buildings, monuments and archaeology for future generations.

Since 1994 we have awarded £3.2billion to 10,200 area, historic building and monument projects across the UK.

These projects can help to sustain jobs, support economic growth and protect heritage at risk. They can also bolster local pride, nurture traditional craft skills and help communities enjoy and make use of the places they care about.

What do we support?

Projects we fund include:

  • investment in places of worship
  • conservation and repairs to historic buildings and places
  • finding appropriate new uses for historic buildings
  • community archaeology projects

Places of worship

Places of worship are among the UK’s oldest and most cherished historic buildings. We want to help congregations become truly resilient and their buildings genuinely sustainable.

Places of worship we fund

Project ideas

Our funding could help people:

  • repair and transform a historic building at the heart of their community
  • help volunteers learn building conservation skills
  • rescue a building on a Buildings at Risk register
  • undertake a community archaeology project
  • regenerate a historic town centre or high street
  • look after and learn about a local war memorial

For more inspiration, see the stories below or browse projects we've funded.

How to get funding

Our National Lottery Heritage Grants programme is open for applications.

Find out more and apply
Visitors stand on the Hogarth Stair and look up at The Pool of Bethesda painting
Visitors stand in front of The Pool of Bethesda painting. Credit: Matthew Andrews

News

£4.9million to restore the heritage treasures of St Bartholomew’s Hospital

Thanks to the National Lottery funding, the ‘Sharing Historic Barts’ project will address urgent repairs to historic spaces situated in the Grade I listed North Wing of the hospital, including the 18th-century Great Hall. It will also provide a public programme with heritage and wellbeing at its
Exeter Cathedral
Exeter Cathedral has received a £4.3million grant for their 2020s Development Appeal.

News

£5.5million awarded to conserve cathedrals and churches across the UK

From conserving magnificent stained glass windows to creating accessible facilities, these places of worship and community hubs will be thriving again – thanks to National Lottery players.
Three people standing underneath a big palm tree in a conservatory
Frankie Toner, Policy and Public Affairs Manager at National Lottery Heritage Fund with Simon Milne MBE, Regius Keeper and Emma Lacroix, Director of Development at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Credit: David Cheskin

News

£4million to save Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh's iconic glasshouses

The investment will also help to look after rare, extraordinary plants, encouraging visitors of all ages to care about the environment.
Six people posing for a picture in front of a Jazz music archive, including posters and frames
Engagement Manager Dawn Bainbridge (centre) on the job – visiting a jazz archive project

Blogs

Luton: A vibrant, diverse town with a rich heritage identity

Our Engagement Manager for England, Midlands & East, Dawn Bainbridge, tells us about our work and investment into Luton’s heritage – one of our 13 Areas of Focus.
The Bradford skyline
The Bradford skyline

News

We welcome Bradford as City of Culture 2025

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has announced that Bradford will follow in Coventry’s footsteps to become the UK’s next City of Culture.
People sitting in a sunny park, near a bandstand
Pearson Park in Kingston upon Hull

Hub

Thriving Places

We are committed to supporting heritage projects that create better places to live, work and visit.
The western end of Sauchiehall Street at dusk: on the right people are walking and cycling by a People Make Glasgow banner and on the left a group of people are standing outside a bar
Sauchiehall Street in Glasgow, which will be revitalised with input from the community and local organisations.

Projects

Sauchiehall Street: Culture and Heritage District

A long-term effort to regenerate Glasgow's Sauchiehall Street has received support through our Heritage Places initiative.

An aerial view of Albert Avenue outdoor swimming pool in Hull
Albert Avenue outdoor swimming pool in Hull.

Projects

A lido revolution: championing outdoor swimming

The Pooling Resources project, led by Future Lidos, has developed and delivered a digital toolkit to support the revival of lidos across the UK.