Stoke-on-Trent to benefit from share of £200m Heritage Places Funding

• The National Lottery Heritage Fund announces £250k investment in Heritage Collaboration Framework led by Stoke-on-Trent City Council.

• Stoke-on-Trent one of nine Heritage Places across the UK to receive funding to commission and undertake engagement with communities and stakeholders.

• Heritage Places aims to build on the cultural and creative partnering opportunities and create a shared vision to guide future heritage regeneration and funding thanks to players of The National Lottery.

Stoke-on-Trent is one of the first places in England to benefit from a share of The National Lottery Heritage Fund’s £200 million Heritage Places initiative, receiving £249,332 to develop a Heritage Collaboration Framework for the area.

Known as the World Capital of Ceramics, Stoke-on Trent and its six towns form the centre of the renowned pottery-producing region of Staffordshire, alongside award-winning museums and visitor centres.

The funding will support extensive community and stakeholder engagement across Stoke-on-Trent to map out and develop heritage needs, current activities, and future opportunities. Convened by Stoke-on-Trent City Council, activities will include convening forums, workshops, focus groups, and digital participation platforms to ensure expertise and experiences are shared across each of the six towns.

Smaller voluntary groups and organisations will also be supported to participate. Additionally, fundraising advisory sessions will be provided to help groups prepare funding bids and business cases for heritage projects.

The goal is to co-create a shared vision and strategic roadmap to guide future heritage regeneration funding and programmes. This will aim to bring together community, heritage and cultural leaders to create a tangible long term plan.

The framework also aims to integrate with other Stoke-on-Trent heritage initiatives underway such as the establishment of a Heritage Steering Group, development of a wider Heritage Strategy for the city, and plans for a Stoke-on-Trent Heritage Trust working with Re-Form Heritage who have recently been awarded funding from the Architectural Heritage Fund to form a Development Trust for Stoke-on-Trent.

Robyn Llewellyn, Director of England Midlands and East at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said:

“At the Heritage Fund, we believe in the power of heritage to create positive and lasting change, now and in the future. We also believe that working at scale in an area can deliver profound impact for its local community, visitors, and economy. 

“This is why we are delighted to be investing £250,000 through our Heritage Places initiative to develop strategic and long-lasting partnerships in Stoke-on-Trent so that community-led placemaking and heritage can thrive.”

Councillor Jane Ashworth, leader of Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said:

“We are incredibly excited and honoured to be one of the first places in the country to benefit from this programme. We are blessed with a huge amount of heritage in the city and are making it a priority to restore and repurpose as much of it as we can to benefit local communities.

“This funding will allow us to develop a Stoke-on-Trent Heritage Collaboration Framework through  engaging with residents and organisations at the heart of our local communities, across all six towns, to find out what is truly important to them when it comes to our heritage.

“We want to create a city-wide vision which will see us secure investment in key historic sites to restore pride in our city and create activities and programmes to  promote the positive impact our heritage will have on the city’s future. We will be marking the city’s centenary in 2025 where we will celebrate the past 100 years – and look forward to the next 100.”

Alasdair Brooks, chief executive of Re-Form Heritage, commented:

“I am delighted to learn that Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s application for early development funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund has been successful.  This funding to develop a Stoke-on-Trent Heritage Collaboration Framework through commissioning and undertaking extensive consultation and engagement with communities and stakeholders across the city will play an important role in working toward a shared town/city-wide vision and focus aligned to, and in support of, the Council’s new Heritage Places initiative.

“This is an exciting time for heritage initiatives in Stoke-on-Trent.  Between this latest successful application, the recent announcement that Stoke-on-Trent would be one of the first nine priority locations in the UK set to benefit from a share of £200 million from the Heritage Fund targeted to unlock the potential of their heritage under the new Heritage Places scheme, and our own recently successful application to have Re-Form Heritage designated as a Heritage Development Trust for Stoke-on-Trent under a new Architectural Heritage Fund and The National Lottery Heritage Fund programme, there is a real feeling of forward momentum when it comes to improving the future of this remarkable city’s internationally significant heritage.”

Heritage Places is one of the long-term initiatives The National Lottery Heritage Fund will be introducing as part of its new 10-year strategy, Heritage 2033, to help address the challenges heritage faces and increase the contribution it makes to people and places.