The Architectural Heritage Fund celebrates its 50th birthday with the launch of its biggest ever fund through the broadened Heritage Revival Fund.
Kingsley Hall, Bristol– a popular Grade II * -listed building dating from 1706 is being changed by regional charity, 1625 Independent Individuals, as a safe area, training centre and social center for marginalised young people and the regional community. A Capital Grant from the Heritage Revival Fund is contributing towards conservation repairs. Photograph: 1625 Independent People.
The Architectural Heritage Fund (AHF) took to the phase at UKREiiF to announce that it’s relaunching the Heritage Revival Fund in England. This follows the statement earlier this year of brand-new financial investment from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to support the growth of the programme.
Through the Heritage Revival Fund, provided in partnership with DCMS and Historic England, the AHF will provide grants to numerous neighborhoods throughout England, supporting them to take control of and find sustainable brand-new usages for derelict or ignored historical structures. Concentrating on town centres and areas of high deprivation, the Fund will help transform these local heritage properties into vibrant brand-new spaces– ranging from arts centres to cultural and neighborhood hubs and cost effective housing.
In particular, the Heritage Revival Fund will prioritise:
- Historic building jobs that can assist regenerate town centres and provide clear economic and social effects for neighborhoods.
- Historical buildings in deprived areas, including in the top 30% most denied locations according to the Indices of Deprivation.
- Projects that will bring historical buildings into community ownership.
- Tasks that aim to bring back and re-use uninhabited or at-risk buildings.
A variety of grants will be readily available to request year-round, from Task Practicality Grants of approximately ₤ 20,000 to support early-stage work, to Job Development Grants of up to ₤ 100,000 to support development work and Capital Grants of as much as ₤ 500,000 to support repair work, repair and conservation work.
Ros Kerslake, Chair of the Architectural Heritage Fund, stated: “In our 50th year, it is great to be able to introduce our greatest ever fund through the broadened Heritage Revival Fund. This brand-new funding will help neighborhoods throughout England change underutilised heritage assets, particularly in town centres and deprived areas. We are extremely grateful to DCMS for this considerable brand-new financial investment.”
Built in 1826 Redruth’s Buttermarket functioned as a meat market, however fell into dereliction as the demand for the marketplace declined. Redruth Revival CIC has provided the cluster of Grade II listed buildings a brand-new least of life as a flourishing cultural and neighborhood center with assistance from partners consisting of The Architectural Heritage Fund. Photograph by Lottie Matthews.
The AHF has actually currently supported a wide variety of fantastic tasks through this program considering that its initial launch in April 2025, including:
- Igbo Home in Toxteth, Liverpool. This Grade II-listed structure was initially built as a Chapel for the Deaf in 1887 and subsequently functioned as Merseyside Centre for the Deaf. It is presently the base for Igbo Community Association Liverpool (ICAL), but the derelict and uninhabited main hall requires substantial work to bring it back into usage. A Job Viability Grant from the Heritage Revival Fund is now supporting plans to restore and transform it into a vibrant community hub. This will end up being an area to collect, hang out, and gain access to support, providing workshops and skills-building activities for youths; cultural events and programs to commemorate and maintain Igbo (a language and ethnic group from Nigeria) heritage; and a location for a range of other local occasions.
- Over in Derbyshire, Wirksworth Housing Cooperative (WHC) is working to bring brand-new life to the Glenorchy Centre. Originally built in 1857 to house the Sunday School of the Congregational Church in Wirksworth, this Grade II-listed structure was repurposed as self-catering accommodation but fell out of usage before being gotten by WHC in 2025. The organisation now wants to transform the Glenorchy Centre into budget friendly, safe and secure, and environmentally sustainable community-led housing for around 10 locals, along with a series of affordable neighborhood facilities and spaces. A Task Advancement Grant from the Heritage Revival Fund is contributing towards expert charges for a style team, heritage and ecological evaluations, and neighborhood assessment, all of which will make it possible for WHC to advance prepare for the reuse of this town centre building.
- In Bristol’s middle ages market, Kingsley Hall– a popular Grade II *-noted structure going back to 1706– is being revived into usage for a new purpose. Very first developed as a town home, this structure later worked as the Bristol headquarters of the Independent Labour Celebration, and hosted meetings of the Suffragettes. Regional charity, 1625 Independent People, now intends to carefully adapt Kingsley Hall for brand-new usages and change it into a thriving, safe space for marginalised youths and the regional neighborhood, with training areas for education and employment; a brand-new training cooking area and youth-led social business café; nine brand-new inexpensive homes for young homeless individuals; and a variety of inviting spaces where youths can get rid of isolation and enhance their wellness. A Capital Grant from the Heritage Revival Fund is contributing towards preservation repair work to this nationally important but at danger high street structure.
Matthew Mckeague, Chief Executive of the Architectural Heritage Fund, said: “Over the previous year, the Heritage Revival Fund has actually helped open the capacity of social business and charities throughout England to handle and transform disregarded heritage assets into thriving brand-new areas. Thanks to our renewed partnership with DCMS and Historical England, we are thrilled to now be able to extend the reach of this overcome the broadened program, which will enable us to support many more interesting community-led plans throughout the country over the next couple of years.”
Check out Matthew Mckeague’s contribution to today’s round table conversation on opening the value of heritage possessions.