The National Lottery Heritage Fund has announced £150 million of long-term funding for the UK’s countryside in a new decade-long initiative, Landscape Connections.
It says this ‘groundbreaking’ programme will fund projects that boost nature recovery, support rural economies, and connect more people to the UK’s most treasured places.
Landscape Connections will be delivered as part of the organisation’s ten-year strategy, Heritage 2033, reaching around 20 large-scale projects across the UK.
Funding will focus on the UK’s Protected Landscapes – National Parks and National Landscapes in Wales and England, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Northern Ireland and National Parks and other world-class landscapes in Scotland.
The Heritage Fund is one of the UK’s largest investors in landscapes and natural heritage. Over the past 30 years it has invested £2.1billion in more than 4,900 landscape, sea and nature projects.
The UK’s landscapes are managed by a complex mosaic of owners including public and private organisations, estates, farmers and communities. The National Lottery Heritage Fund says Landscape Connections will empower these to join up to make lasting impact.
The funding will allow for new and ambitious local partnerships to undertake enterprising projects, fostering collaboration and creating a network of “protected landscapes” across the UK for the betterment of landscapes, wildlife, and communities.
Landscape Connections funding can be applied for over the next ten years and will support the people who make landscapes thrive to strengthen working landscapes.
It will build on the successes of previous partnership projects such as Ynys Cybi: Ynys i’w Thrysori – Our Island Gem. Awarded £1.1million in 2016, the project is focused on Ynys Cybi, a small rocky island off the western coast of Anglesey.
This project is addressing priorities identified by the local community to ensure the land and coast is enjoyed responsibly and secured for future generations.
To protect this special place, this landscape partnership has 21 projects addressing a number of actions recognised as priorities by the local community. The partnership involves representatives from the local area including over 40 stakeholders.
One focus of the project is to improve understanding of the character of the landscape and its benefits to the community, including improving people’s wellbeing, quality of life and the local economy. Some of the projects will manage and enhance the characteristic heathland habitat through clearing scrub and longer-term management solutions. Others focus on linking communities with the coast and country parks by developing easy access footpaths and new walks and trails.
The Landscape Partnership scheme will run until 2025, though the project is planning beyond this point to ensure the legacy of the scheme is continued.
Julian Glover OBE, Heritage Fund Trustee, said:
“We have some of the most beautiful, loved and famous landscapes in the world but they can do a lot more for nature and more for people. This is a chance to make them flourish by working with those who know them best, from naturalists to businesses and farmers. The aim is to revive and connect these treasured places so that they can do their job well, making life healthier and happier for everyone, regardless of age or background. This programme goes beyond investing in land and nature recovery to back the people who make landscapes thrive. There is no better moment to get started: the challenge is great and the need for change is huge.”
Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive of the Heritage Fund, said:
“Landscape Connections is an ambitious initiative and represents a major commitment by The National Lottery Heritage Fund to not only preserve our natural heritage but to reinvigorate and protect it for future generations. As one of the UK’s largest investors in landscapes and natural heritage, we strongly believe that everyone benefits from landscapes rich in nature and beauty. I look forward to seeing the funded projects develop and create tangible change over the next decade to further our vision for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future.”
