# National Lottery Heritage Fund to offer loans & partnerships

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2019/02/01/national-lottery-heritage-fund-offer-loans-partnerships/
- Published: 2019-02-01T08:10:57+00:00
- Author: Melanie May

**The National Lottery Heritage Fund has unveiled its plans for the next five years,
which will include offering loans and partnerships as well as investing around £
1.2 billion in heritage projects.**

Following this week’s name change from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the [National Lottery Heritage Fund](https://www.heritagefund.org.uk/)
announced a number of changes to the way it will operate.

From now on, all funding decisions up to £5 million, which equates to around 80%
of all of its funding, will be made in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and three
new English areas: North; Midlands and East; and London and South.

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It will also explore social and other models of investment, including loans and 
partnerships in addition to grants. In its [Strategic Funding Framework for 2019–2024](https://www.heritagefund.org.uk/publications/strategic-funding-framework-2019-2024)
document, CEO Ros Kerslake says:

> “By investing a proportion of our income, initially small, in social investments(
> for example through loans and impact funds) we will recycle some of our funding
> and increase our impact. We will build capacity in organisations to take advantage
> of repayable finance, and use additional investment to grow the overall ‘pot’ 
> available for heritage.”

The document also announces a streamlining of its grantmaking portfolio, which will
see the vast majority of its funding to be delivered through National Lottery Grants
for Heritage. This is an open programme for any type of heritage project from £3,000
to £5 million, and can be applied to immediately.

Other changes include:

 * Simplifying its application processes and requirements, including introducing
   single-round grants up to £250,000
 * Launching heritage funding campaigns with the objective of fulfilling strategic
   needs or funding gaps. The first two will launch this year and will focus on 
   helping organisations build their capacity and organisational resilience, and
   build digital capabilities
 * Joint funds to deliver strategic initiatives in partnership with other organisations,
   such as the Future Parks Accelerator partnership with the National Trust, social
   investments such as impact funds and loans, and two rounds of major grants of
   over £5m in 2020–21 and 2022–23
 * More support for commercial, sustainable approaches to tackling heritage in danger
   of being lost
 * More investment and support to help heritage organisations be more financially
   sustainable

It will also make it a requirement for every heritage project that receives funding
to be environmentally friendly.

Ros Kerslake, CEO of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said:

> “Over the past 25 years, money raised by people who buy National Lottery tickets
> has profoundly changed how we view and engage with the UK’s exceptionally varied
> heritage. By putting people at its heart, it has helped our wonderful buildings,
> iconic landscapes, cultural memories and traditions and native species not just
> survive, but thrive.
> “Over the next five years, The National Lottery Heritage Fund will inspire, lead
> and resource the UK’s heritage, distributing more than £1bn. So we will be making
> more decisions on funding locally and focusing on the heritage that really matters
> to people, creating jobs, bringing economic prosperity and improving people’s 
> lives right across the UK.”

 * **[Cause4 launches business support programme for heritage organisations](https://fundraising.co.uk/2020/08/12/cause4-launches-business-support-programme-for-heritage-organisations/)**(
   12 August 2020)
 * **[National Lottery Heritage Fund reopens project grants of up to £5 million](https://fundraising.co.uk/2021/02/09/national-lottery-heritage-fund-reopens-project-grants-up-to-5m/)**(
   9 February 2021)
 * **[Impact of Heritage Emergency Fund evaluated in new report](https://fundraising.co.uk/2021/06/02/impact-of-heritage-emergency-fund-evaluated-in-new-report/)**(
   2 June 2021)

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