Cash to be distributed to restorations that generate income
The Heritage Lottery Fund is to launch a new grant programme, Heritage Enterprise, which will distribute around £25m of gap funding to commercial sector firms working in partnership with community organisations to rescue historic buildings and bring them back into a commercial productive end use, writes Stephen Cousins.
“This is a slight change from what was done before,” said Ian Morrison, head of historic environment conservation, strategy and business development at the HLF. “We’re saying projects that get these grants should have a commercial end use and generate a commercial income. We provide the gap funding if we are convinced that building can make a significant contribution to the economy by attracting new business.”
The HLF is also benefitting from the return of funds that had been diverted to pay for the Olympics. Its grants pot for 2013-14 stands at £375m for the second year.
The Butcher’s Works in Sheiffield were revived following Heritage Lottery funding
This is more than double the £180m the UK’s biggest funder of heritage building and refurbishment projects received in 2007-2008 when its budget was cut by the government to help pay for the Olympics.
Current levels of funding also reflect the HLF’s increased share of lottery income, which was raised in 2012 from 16% to 20%, and healthy National Lottery ticket sales.
But the HLF’s relatively healthy bank account coincides with an increase in the number of grant applications it is receiving, added Morrison: “All applications for grants have increased significantly, for example, in 2012-2013 we received 418 applications for projects involving a capital new build element, which compares to 304 applications in 2009-2010.”
Meanwhile, the continuing economic difficulties have meant that applicants are now seeking on average a greater percentage of HLF funding towards projects.
In 2012-2013 the average grant request for capital-focused projects was 63%, compared to 59% in 2007-2008. While the average grant request for non-capital refurbishment and conservation projects was 85% in 2012-2013 up from 69% in 2007-2008.
