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New Surrey heritage fund to grant first-time and grassroots projects

Image: Surrey (Alicia Slough / Unsplash)

The ‘Surrey Heritage for All Fund’ will distribute National Lottery Heritage Fund capital to community organisations which may not have successfully applied for grants before

A new heritage fund has been announced, which will award grants of up to £10,000 to local heritage projects.

The ‘Surrey Heritage for All Fund’ has been created by Surrey Cultural Partnership (SCP) and the Community Foundation for Surrey (CFSurrey). It has received £250,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, which it will allocate as grants to eligible not-for-profit community organisations.

The model allows grants to be administered locally, and will seek to reach small organisations which may not have successfully applied for grants before, Community Foundation for Surrey said.

“In addition to helping a wider range of people access heritage in Surrey, the Heritage for All Fund will contribute to the sustainability of organisations looking after heritage in the county, helping to preserve our heritage for the future,” it said.

Stuart McLeod, The National Lottery Heritage Fund’s Director of England – London & South, spoke about the project at Surrey Cultural Forum 2025.

“We welcome the ambitions of Surrey Cultural Partnership and the Community Foundation for Surrey to help a wider range of people benefit from, and engage with, heritage through the Surrey Heritage for All Fund,” McLeod said.

“For The National Lottery Heritage Fund this is also an opportunity for us to reach grass roots heritage organisations in the county who may not historically have benefited from our funding.”

Dr Rebecca Bowden, Chief Executive of the Community Foundation for Surrey, added: “We hope that the projects funded will create a broader audience for heritage in Surrey, and that the programme will demonstrate to future potential donors and to those commissioning and delivering well-being and health programmes within Surrey (Voluntary Community and Social Enterprise sectors) how beneficial heritage projects can be in improving people’s quality of life.”

The Surrey Heritage for All Fund will be administered in two rounds, with Round One opening for Expressions of Interest in April 2025.