Lifeline grants from the latest round of the £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund will protect a further 162 heritage sites to ensure that jobs and access to arts, culture and heritage in local communities are protected in the months ahead, the Culture Secretary announced today.
Historic sites and attractions, including the Pride of Sefton, will receive help to meet ongoing costs and support to restart activity when it is possible to do so safely.
More than £9 million has been allocated by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England on behalf of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, which builds on £103 million awarded to more significant historic places last month. Grants between £10,000 and £1 million have been awarded to stabilise 77 organisations.
The Pride of Sefton will receive over £32,000 which will enable them to increase safety on board through additional training, supplies and the creation of separate spaces for crew and passengers. Further to this, the funds will also be used to create a Development Officer post within the organisation to help develop and forge partnerships with education providers. Historical trips will be offered to showcase Liverpool’s unique heritage, educating passengers on a variety of subjects including the slave trade, landmark architecture and Liverpool maritime history.
Culture Secretary, Oliver Dowden, said:
“These grants will help the places that have shaped our skylines for hundreds of years and that continue to define culture in our towns and cities.
From St Paul’s and Ronnie Scott’s to The Lowry and Durham Cathedral, we’re protecting heritage and culture in every corner of the country to save jobs and ensure it can bounce back strongly.”
Ann Owens, Pride of Sefton said:
“We are delighted to have been awarded a grant from the Cultural Recovery Fund as part of their efforts to keep local culture and heritage protected for the months ahead.
The money allocated to us by National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England will help the Pride of Sefon to connect with more charitable and community based organisations that share our ethos of keeping our rich Liverpool heritage and culture alive.
Our hope is to expand our service offer by having historians and re-enactments on-board to bring history to life, passing on local stories and knowledge to the next generation. In doing all this, as so many have told us before, we will also be enriching our passenger’s health and well-being.”
A leisure trip aboard the Pride of Sefton wide beam canal boat will see passengers sail through docks located within Liverpool’s UNESCO designated World Heritage Site. Additional measures have been introduced to increase safety aboard the Pride of Sefton and trips will continue to operate in line with Government guidelines.
Duncan Wilson, Historic England Chief Executive said:
“Historic places across the country, from Durham Cathedral embodying more than a thousand years of history to the Crystal Palace dinosaurs, much loved by children and grownups alike, are being supported by the Government’s latest round of grants awarded under the Culture Recovery Fund. This funding is a lifeline which is kickstarting essential repairs and maintenance at many of our most precious historic sites, so they can begin to recover from the damaging effects of Covid-19. It is also providing employment for skilled craft workers who help to keep historic places alive and the wheels of the heritage sector turning. Our shared heritage is an anchor for us all in these challenging times and this funding will help to ensure it remains part of our collective future.”
Ros Kerslake, Chief Executive of the National Lottery Heritage Fund said:
“The Government’s £1.57bn package for culture is unprecedented and it’s important to acknowledge how valuable this has been for our heritage organisations and visitor attractions. Although we are not able to support everyone facing difficulties, today’s funding package helps a diverse range of heritage organisations from across the country survive, adapt and plan for a brighter future through the Culture Recovery Fund for Heritage.
“By the end of this financial year we will have distributed almost £600m of Government and National Lottery Funding to heritage organisations. Investing in heritage remains vitally important, creating jobs and economic prosperity, driving tourism, supporting our wellbeing and making our towns, cities, and rural areas better places to live. There is a lot more work to do to address the ongoing challenges, but this funding has provided a future for much of our heritage and the organisations that care for it, when it might otherwise have been permanently lost.”