Good heritage funding doesn’t just save buildings.

The £13 million in Heritage at Risk Capital Funding announced earlier this month for 20 sites across England, will create the means for communities to reconnect with place, memory and belonging.

From Margate Museum to Blackpool’s former Post Office, the projects supported are not only about repairing historic fabric. They are about making heritage accessible, relevant, and useful to the people who live alongside it. This is just as important in today’s many broken societies.

As someone working in heritage storytelling, I’m always interested in what happens after restoration. What happens after the project delivery phase?

Once a building is stabilised, how do we help people connect with its stories? How do we ensure local voices are represented, or turn preserved spaces into places of curiosity, conversation, and community?

I’m a volunteer with the Greyfriars building in Lincoln. This received just over £3 million in funding from various sources, and is currently being re-purposed into a fully accessible community space. Combining its varied and diverse history, it will once again serve Lincoln and beyond as a place where the community can come together.

The Heritage at Risk Capital Funding announcement also signalled that a further round of funding is expected during the 2026/27 financial year, creating new opportunities for organisations looking to safeguard heritage at risk.

For heritage professionals, writers, museums, archives, and community groups alike, this feels like a useful reminder that investment in heritage is ultimately an investment in people. I’ve seen how powerful it can be when local people encounter the hidden histories of the places they pass every day. Funding may repair a roof, restore a façade, or stabilise a structure, but storytelling is often what brings heritage back to life.

Here in Lincolnshire, we’re surrounded by remarkable stories waiting to be uncovered, from overlooked local figures to forgotten community histories and the everyday experiences that rarely make it into official records.

I’d love to know:

What hidden heritage story in your community deserves more attention?

#HeritageFunding #HeritageAtRisk #HeritageStorytelling #LocalHistory #CommunityHeritage #Museums #HistoricEngland #LincolnshireHeritage #TheHeritageWriter #CulturalHeritage