HLF announces £52m initial support for five heritage projects
Geraldine Kendall, 11.05.2011
Geffrye Museum, British Museum and Windermere Steamboat Museum among successful applicants
The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) has announced initial support worth £52m for five major heritage projects in Hastings, London and the Lake District.
In London, the British Museum was awarded support for its planned World Conservation and Exhibition Centre, the Geffrye Museum won funding towards a major site redevelopment and the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew succeeded with a bid to conserve Temperate House, the world’s largest surviving glass structure.
Elsewhere, the grade II listed Hastings Pier in Sussex, which suffered extensive fire damage last year, gained support to undertake a full restoration and build new visitor facilities aimed at regenerating the town.
The fifth bid was awarded to Windermere Steamboat Museum, Cumbria, for an ambitious project to build new museum facilities and a conservation workshop.
The museum, which is currently closed to the public, also plans to restore 40 vintage boats, some of which may then be used to take visitors out on Lake Windermere. Apprenticeships in boat conservation will be integral to the project.
The museum’s project coordinator Charlotte Upton said the grant was “fantastic news”.
“It will be instrumental in helping us move the project forward,” she said, adding that funding for conservation training would help to “keep traditional boat skills alive”.
HLF chairwoman Jenny Abramsky praised the quality and diversity of this year’s bids, saying the choice was “the hardest we have ever faced”.
She said: “It’s particularly good news for our tourism industry as they are all popular visitor attractions which are important to local economies.”
The initial support means all five projects can now progress to the second stage of the HLF application process. They have up to two years to submit more detailed plans and apply for a full HLF grant.
Hastings Pier, Sussex
- Initial support for an £8.75m HLF bid
- Includes £357,400 development funding
The Temperate House Project at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London
- Initial support for a £15m HLF bid
- Includes £890,900 development funding
Windermere Steamboat Museum, Cumbria
- Initial support for a £7.4m HLF bid
- Includes £494,000 development funding
The British Museum World Conservation and Exhibition Centre, London
- Initial support for a £10m HLF bid
- No development funding
Geffrye Museum: Museum of the Home, London
- Initial support for a £10.9m HLF bid
- Includes £518,500 development funding
In London, the British Museum was awarded support for its planned World Conservation and Exhibition Centre, the Geffrye Museum won funding towards a major site redevelopment and the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew succeeded with a bid to conserve Temperate House, the world’s largest surviving glass structure.
Elsewhere, the grade II listed Hastings Pier in Sussex, which suffered extensive fire damage last year, gained support to undertake a full restoration and build new visitor facilities aimed at regenerating the town.
The fifth bid was awarded to Windermere Steamboat Museum, Cumbria, for an ambitious project to build new museum facilities and a conservation workshop.
The museum, which is currently closed to the public, also plans to restore 40 vintage boats, some of which may then be used to take visitors out on Lake Windermere. Apprenticeships in boat conservation will be integral to the project.
The museum’s project coordinator Charlotte Upton said the grant was “fantastic news”.
“It will be instrumental in helping us move the project forward,” she said, adding that funding for conservation training would help to “keep traditional boat skills alive”.
HLF chairwoman Jenny Abramsky praised the quality and diversity of this year’s bids, saying the choice was “the hardest we have ever faced”.
She said: “It’s particularly good news for our tourism industry as they are all popular visitor attractions which are important to local economies.”
The initial support means all five projects can now progress to the second stage of the HLF application process. They have up to two years to submit more detailed plans and apply for a full HLF grant.
HLF first round grant recipients
Hastings Pier, Sussex
- Initial support for an £8.75m HLF bid
- Includes £357,400 development funding
The Temperate House Project at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London
- Initial support for a £15m HLF bid
- Includes £890,900 development funding
Windermere Steamboat Museum, Cumbria
- Initial support for a £7.4m HLF bid
- Includes £494,000 development funding
The British Museum World Conservation and Exhibition Centre, London
- Initial support for a £10m HLF bid
- No development funding
Geffrye Museum: Museum of the Home, London
- Initial support for a £10.9m HLF bid
- Includes £518,500 development funding
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