The first round of funding from the Government’s £1.57bn Culture Recovery Fund has been awarded to 445 heritage organisations.
The organisations in England will receive grants of up to £1m to help them survive the coronavirus pandemic.
The money will be used to restart repair and maintenance work, as well as keeping venues open during the pandemic.
Culture secretary, Oliver Dowden, said: ‘As a nation it is essential that we preserve our heritage and celebrate and learn from our past. This massive support package will protect our shared heritage for future generations, save jobs and help us prepare for a cultural bounceback post COVID.’
The Government will announce a further round of grants of up to £3m in the near future.
Duncan Wilson, Historic England’s chief executive added: ‘These grants range from giving skilled craft workers the chance to keep their trades alive to helping heritage organisations pay the bills, and to kick-starting repair works at our best-loved historic sites. The funding is an essential lifeline for our heritage and the people who work tirelessly to conserve it for us all, so that we can hand it on to future generations.’
Photo: Ham Hill Country Park is one of organisations to receive the funding.
