The press release issued by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on 20 May 2026.
Three heritage funds have opened for Expressions of Interest, including the new £92 million Places of Worship Fund, as well as the second rounds of the Heritage at Risk Capital Fund and Heritage Revival Fund.
- Places of Worship Renewal Fund offers up to £23 million this year; Heritage at Risk Capital Fund up to £15 million; and Heritage Revival Fund up to £10 million
- Part of the wider £1.5 billion Arts Everywhere Fund, these investments will be targeted at areas of high deprivation, which face the greatest fundraising challenges
Heritage sites are set to benefit from a share of £48 million to fund everything from transformation projects to urgent masonry or stained glass window repairs.
Three heritage funding schemes have opened for applications, aimed at the 14,000 listed places of worship in England as well as the most at-risk heritage sites in our villages, towns and cities. The schemes will support communities in areas of the greatest need to repair, rejuvenate or transform their heritage buildings to meet the needs of local communities today.
Many places of worship and heritage sites fulfil wide roles in modern communities, from providing services like food banks and warm spaces, to providing affordable housing or workspaces for local entrepreneurs. Returning faith and heritage buildings to prime condition is part of the Government’s mission to increase pride in local communities.
Baroness Twycross announced the launch of these heritage funds during a visit to Grimsby Minster and the Sir Moses Montefiore Synagogue, where she met the volunteers who help care for the sites.
Heritage Minister Baroness Twycross said:
Across our country, thousand-year-old Norman church towers sit at the heart of communities, with brick mills and other former industrial buildings all too often needing significant repair to bring them back to their former glory and create community assets for the future. So many of these heritage sites are cared for by volunteers or community groups and our significant heritage funding schemes are designed to back their ambitions.
Our listed places of worship and heritage sites make vital contributions to local communities, particularly in areas of the greatest need. This targeted funding is an important step in keeping the roofs water-tight and doors wide open at churches, and for bringing historic buildings back into use for the communities who care for them.
Places of Worship Renewal Fund
Offering up to £23 million this year, the new Places of Worship Renewal Fund will support a range of small to large projects, from urgent structural repairs to physical access improvements and the installation of new facilities to expand community use. A further £69 million will be made available across the course of this parliament.
Listed places of worship across the country have reported falling behind on structural repairs and maintenance, with those in areas of high deprivation facing overwhelming challenges to fundraising for the capital costs of building works. The Places of Worship Renewal Fund targets those areas of the greatest need, helping remove previously insurmountable financial barriers to crucial repairs with upfront capital grants. It is open to listed places of worship serving all faiths.
The new funding scheme brings listed places of worship in line with the funding opportunities that other heritage buildings enjoy, with confirmation of the scheme for the next four years providing much-needed certainty to the church sector. The scheme will be delivered by Historic England, who have well developed relationships across the sector and can draw on their depth of experience to support communities and volunteers with projects of all sizes.
Heritage at Risk Capital Fund
A second round of the Heritage at Risk Capital Fund has opened for Expressions of Interest, backing projects that ensure heritage buildings are fit for the future and continue to tell our national story in communities across the country. The fund prioritises projects that restore heritage sites serving disadvantaged communities and which demonstrate strong local benefits, from job creation to cultural events.
Up to £15 million in funding is available to at-risk heritage sites this year, as part of a total £75 million Heritage at Risk Capital Fund.
Heritage Revival Fund
The Heritage Revival Fund has also opened applications to its second round, with funding doubling to £10 million per year. The fund – worth £45 million in total – helps communities to rescue and repurpose neglected historic buildings and transform them to meet modern needs, focusing on regenerating historic buildings in town centre locations to create new arts and culture venues, workspaces, affordable housing, and more.
Emma Squire and Claudia Kenyatta, Co-CEOs of Historic England said:
Places of worship and historic buildings are at the heart of communities across England. They connect people to their local history and identity, while providing spaces that support wellbeing, pride and social connection. Through the Places of Worship Renewal Fund and the Heritage at Risk Capital Fund, this investment will direct support to the places where it is needed most, helping to repair and secure the future of some of our most valued heritage. By protecting these buildings and supporting their sustainable reuse, we can help communities unlock their potential for generations to come.
Matthew Mckeague, Chief Executive of the Architectural Heritage Fund said:
Over the past year, the Heritage Revival Fund has helped unlock the potential of social enterprises and charities throughout England to take on and transform neglected heritage assets into thriving new spaces. Thanks to our renewed partnership with DCMS and Historic England, we are thrilled to now be able to extend the reach of this work through the expanded programme, which will enable us to support many more exciting community-led schemes across the country over the next few years.
The Bishop of Lynn, Dr Jane Steen, the Church of England’s joint lead bishop for buildings, said:
Our church buildings are national treasures for the common good, both for their spiritual, cultural and historical significance and the vital practical help they provide communities across the country.
The majority of fundraising for the maintenance and repair of church buildings is done locally by thousands of wonderful volunteers. The Places of Worship Renewal Fund has a vital part to play alongside this local fundraising, and other funders who support churches.
We welcome the launch of the Fund and we look forward to working closely with Historic England, in helping encourage eligible churches to make full use of the scheme.
Notes to editors:
- Historic England will distribute the Places of Worship Renewal Fund and the Heritage at Risk Capital Fund. The Architectural Heritage Fund will distribute the Heritage Revival Fund in partnership with Historic England.
- Applicants can submit expressions of interest to the Places of Worship Renewal Fund through Historic England’s website.
- The first round of the Heritage at Risk Capital Fund backed 37 projects across the country, helping transform vulnerable heritage locations into vibrant community spaces. Projects have included:
- Health Hydro Turkish Baths, Swindon – Support for roof repairs at the rare Victorian-era Turkish baths is delivering a climate-resilient and environmentally enhanced roof structure. The reopened baths will offer affordable and inclusive programmes that respond to community needs, whilst bringing a culturally significant leisure facility back into use.
- Greenhouse Centre, London – Funding for the final phases of transforming a shuttered 200 year-old space into a new sports hub in central London. The hub’s aim will be to provide coaching and mentoring to young people facing poverty.
- Salford Lads Club, Manchester – Capital grants helping the essential repairs at the historic community club in Salford. The funding will support roof slate replacements and masonry repairs to ensure the sustainability of this iconic community building, famously linked to The Smiths.
- Images connected to the Places of Worship Renewal Fund and Heritage at Risk Capital Fund can be found on Historic England’s image gallery.
- Applicants can submit expressions of interest to the Heritage at Risk Capital Fund through Historic England’s website.
- The first round of the Heritage Revival Fund backed ten projects with capital grants to directly facilitate their transformative ambitions, as well as fifty-six projects with viability and development grants to formulate plans to reinvent their roles within communities. This includes:
- Northumberland Hall, Alnwick – Capital funding has supported early works to get started on the restoration of the hall. It will become the new home of the volunteer-led Bailiffgate Museum & Gallery, facilitating new gallery spaces, meeting rooms, reinterpreted exhibitions of their collection, as well as spaces for local artists to exhibit and sell their work.
- Kingsley Hall, Bristol – This Grade II*-listed former town house is being restored and transformed into a safe space for marginalised young people and the local community by charity 1625 Independent People. The project will create training spaces, a social enterprise café, and nine new affordable homes for young homeless people.
- St John’s Church, Great Yarmouth – Restoration is underway to convert the Grade-II listed former church into a multi-use cultural and community hub, providing training and engagement, especially for unemployed young people. Once restored it will provide a space for workshops, training, exhibitions, screenings, events, music, rehearsals, artist residencies, learning and engagement.
- Images for the Heritage Revival Fund are supplied by the Architectural Heritage Fund.
- Applicants can submit expressions of interest to the Heritage Revival Fund through the Architectural Heritage Fund’s website.
- Heritage is a devolved matter. The Places of Worship Renewal Fund, Heritage at Risk Capital Fund and Heritage Revival Fund are open to listed places of worship and heritage sites in England. The Devolved Governments receive Barnett consequentials proportionate to overall departmental settlements, with decisions on the allocation of this funding for the Devolved Governments to take.