New Historic England fund focuses on ‘everyday heritage’

Historic England is inviting funding applications for projects that celebrate working-class history.

Everyday Heritage Grants: Celebrating Working Class Histories is a £330,000 scheme that will provide up to £25,000 to support individual initiatives that ‘focus on heritage that links people to overlooked historic places’.

Those eligible include community interest groups, charities and local authorities. Individuals can also apply.

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Explaining the thinking behind the new scheme, Historic England chief executive Duncan Wilson said that while the “histories of castles and great houses and their inhabitants are well documented”, England’s 'everyday heritage' is often overlooked.

He added that the kinds of everyday places the scheme is interested in highlighting include “council estates, pubs and clubs, farms, factories and shipyards”.

“We want to explore these untold stories and celebrate the people and places at the heart of our history,” he said.

Grassroots organisations

As part of its ambition to enable working-class people to voice their own histories, Historic England said it is particularly keen to receive applications from grassroots organisations rather than the established heritage sector.

To this end it is encouraging applications for projects requiring small grants of up to £10,000.

Amelia Anderson, a spokesperson at the non-departmental public body, said: “We are especially interested in applications from groups and individuals that are not heritage organisations but can deliver heritage projects.”

Community-led projects are a priority, although proposals "with links to established heritage institutions” will also be considered.

Nigel Huddleston, heritage minister, said: “I welcome plans for new community-led projects to tell the story of working people across the country, bringing our collective and shared history back to life.”

Cultural activities

As well as its role in listing and protecting buildings and historic sites through its management of the National Heritage List for England, Historic England highlights the country’s heritage through its funding of cultural activities.

In 2021, for example, it announced details of a four-year, £7.4m cultural programme for England’s high streets.

This latest scheme will exclusively fund activity that tells cultural stories connected to the built and historic environment.

It will not support the repair or maintenance of the sites that the projects are associated with, and there is no requirement for any associated building to be listed by Historic England.

The kinds of initiatives that might be funded by the scheme include oral history projects, self-guided walking tours, community collaborations with artists and the development of digital resources.

As part of its eligibility criteria, Historic England is asking that projects also provide young people or those facing loneliness and isolation with volunteering opportunities.

How a project will contribute to the participants’ wellbeing is another key consideration for eligibility.

Pilot scheme

The Everyday Heritage Grants scheme is a pilot and forms part of a range of cultural projects Historic England aims to deliver over the next three years.

“We are hoping to gauge what appetite there is for such grants with this pilot and take this into consideration for what topics we’d consider for future projects,” Anderson said.

The deadline for applications is May 23 and projects that secure funding should aim to be completed by September 2023.