Architectural Heritage Fund (AHF)
Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF)
English Heritage
Directory of Funds for Historic Buildings
Additional Charitable Grant-making Bodies
GOVERNMENT AND EUROPEAN FUNDS
Regional Development Agencies (RDA)
Department of Trade and Industry
Landfil Tax Credit Scheme
European Funds

Architectural Heritage Fund (AHF)
AHF is a charity, formed in 1976. Its resources derive form grants, donations and from accumulated surpluses.

The AHF can help any charity intending to rescue an historic building, with

• Feasibility Study Grants
• Refundable Project Development Grants and
• Low-interest loans
  
  Building Preservation Trusts qualify for further grants
• Project Administration Grants and
• Project Organiser Grants

To qualify, buildings must be listed or scheduled or in a Conservation Area. If in a Conservation Area, but unlisted, it needs to be of recognised architectural or historic merit. The project must involve change of ownership or change of use. The AHF can not help private or commercial owners.

Contact: the AHF office 020 7925 0199, web site: www.ahfund.org.uk

Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) (^ Top of Page)
The following schemes are funded by the National Lottery.

Two grants relate directly (though not exclusively) to the restoration of buildings: Heritage Grants of £50,000 or more and Your Heritage Grants of £5,000 to £50,000
Eligible applicants are not-for-profit organisations or partnerships led by a not-for-profit organisation. The HLF will consider applications by partnerships involving private owners for educational and access schemes only.

HLF require match funding of at least 10% for projects totalling up to £100,000 and 25% for those of £100,000 plus.
Heritage and Your Heritage Grants to Building Preservation Trusts (BPTs), (which intend selling a building after restoration), are on a different basis to other organisations and are related to the “conservation deficit”. This is the shortfall between the total project costs and the estimated net proceeds of sale.
Generally, buildings must be listed, scheduled and/or in a Conservation Area.

Heritage Grants of £50,000 or more
To qualify for a Heritage Grant the project must either:

• Conserve and enhance our heritage or
• Encourage more people to be involved in their heritage or both
  The project must also:
• Make sure that everyone can learn about, have access to and enjoy their heritage

To help prepare for making an application, there are
Project Planning grants to help organisations:

• Produce an access plan
• Produce a conservation management plan
• Carry out research into audience development or
• To employ a project officer

Your Heritage grants of £5,000 to £50,000
To qualify for a Your Heritage grant the project must either:

• Encourage communities to identify, look after and celebrate their own heritage
• Help conserve and sustain heritage at risk
• Open up heritage resources and sites to the widest possible audience and
• Increase opportunities for learning about heritage
• Encourage more people to be involved in their heritage or both

Telephone 020 7591 6042

Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI).
This scheme, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, is administered by the local authority.
The THI is intended to support heritage and regeneration within a conservation area. Property owners within an identified THI area can apply for grant assistance towards:

• Structural works and building repairs
• Reinstatement of architectural details
• Bringing vacant floor space into use

Local Contact at Wolverhampton City Council (WCC): Karen Holyoake, THI Project Officer 01902 555625

Grants which are less appropriate for building restoration but may be relevant:
Heritage Lottery Fund for small local groups
These are specifically intended to support heritage projects run by small local groups.

• Awards for All grants, between £500 and £5,000
• Local Heritage Initiative. 100% grants for community and education based projects, for £3,000-25,000.
  See www.lhi.org.uk
• Young roots, between £5,000 and £25,000 aimed at promoting the involvement of young people , 13 to 20 years old

Repair grants for Places of Worship.
Focuses on urgent repairs.

Visit the HLF web site www.hlf.org.uk

English Heritage (^ Top of Page)
EH is the government’s statutory advisor on the historic environment.
Grants are available for grade II* and grade I listed buildings which are on, are could be on, their Risk Register.
EH web-site: www.english-heritage.org.uk and follow links to Conserving Historic Places, then A Guide to Grants for details of the local office.

Heritage Economic Regeneration Scheme (HERS).
The HERS is intended to support heritage and regeneration within a conservation area. This scheme is funded by English Heritage, but administered by the local authority.
Property owners within an identified HERS area can apply for grant assistance towards:
1. Repair and conservation of buildings
2. Reinstatement of lost architectural features
3. Enhancement of spaces between buildings.

Local Contact at Wolverhampton City Council (WCC): Jon Beesley, Urban Design and Conservation Officer 01902 555622

Directory of Funds for Historic Buildings (^ Top of Page)
The Architectural Heritage Fund “Funds for Historic Buildings in England and Wales – a Directory of Sources” can be obtained in hard copy from the AHF or viewed on the Funds for Historic Buildings web site www.ffhb.org.uk
These are normally available to registered charities. They vary in size and purpose. They are generally most appropriate for smaller projects where the grant can make a significant impact.

Additional Charitable Grant-making Bodies (^ Top of Page)
Glaziers Trust. For the restoration and conservation of historic glass, and promotion of the craft. www.worshipfulglaziers.com
Bridges Community Ventures. Invests in businesses. www.bridgesventures.com
The Prince’s Foundation. Regeneration Through Heritage promotes the re-use of heritage industrial buildings. www.princes-foundation.org

GOVERNMENT AND EUROPEAN FUNDS (^ Top of Page)
Regional Development Agency money and European money have specific aims with regards to supporting businesses, employment and communities. Grants aimed at supporting an entrepreneurial business or local community initiatives may include the conversion of a historic building and are therefore included here.

Regional Development Agencies (RDA) (^ Top of Page)
In the West Midlands, the Regional Development Agency (RDA) is known as Advantage West Midlands (AWM). It is through the RDAs that Regional Economic Strategy is delivered. For our region, the key strategic document is known as the West Midlands Regional Economic Strategy (WMRES).

The RDA has identified three key mechanisms through which it – Advantage West Midlands – can ensure the Regional Economic Strategy is delivered. These three mechanisms are:

• Regeneration Zones
• Technology Corridors
• Cluster Action Plans

The RDA has allocated its financial resources against these three mechanisms.

Within the West Midlands RDA, there are 6 Regeneration Zones established, 3 Technology Corridors, and 10 Cluster Action Plans. The Regeneration Zones and Technology Corridors have a specific geographic focus, whereas the Cluster Action Plans are targeted at a range of business sectors specifically identified due to their importance to the region.

Links to the above delivery mechanisms can be found on the RDA web-site: www.advantagewm.co.uk

For sources of finance for small growing companies or new start-ups visit the AWM Finance E-Portal: www.westmidlandsfinance.com

Department of Trade and Industry (^ Top of Page)
The DTI Solar (PV) Grants Programme is managed by the Energy Saving Trust (EST). The grant is towards the installation of photovoltaic panels.

The EST web-site: www.practicalhelp.org.uk is aimed at Local Authorities, but has some useful information and contacts.

Landfill Tax Credit Scheme (^ Top of Page)
LTCS encourages Landfill Operators (LOs) to support environmental projects. All LO contributions must be made to Distributive Environmental Bodies (DEBs) which are registered with ENTRUST. Projects must meet LTCS objectives, but allocation of credits is at the discretion of the contributing LO.
Credits are available for Objectives D and E relating to parks, religious buildings and historic/architectural buildings, usually within a 10 mile radius of a landfill site.
Eligibility:

• Charities. Also, non-profit distributing organisations i.e. surplus must be used to further organisation’s objects, not be used to pay dividends or other rewards.
  
• Organisation must not be controlled – directly or indirectly – by a local authority or landfill operator registered to pay landfill tax.

Information obtained from Web-site: www.ltcs.org.uk and their link to Environment Agency web-site.

European Funds (^ Top of Page)
The West Midlands Objective 2 Programme encompasses the European Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF). The funds are administered through Government Office for the West Midlands (GOWM).

The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)
The ERDF is usually aimed at projects being promoted by the public sector. However, voluntary sector organisations including Building Preservation Trusts may apply, if the end use of the building meets ERDF criteria. Ineligible projects are: health care, retail and leisure.
The ERDF provides assistance in particular for investment that creates or maintains jobs, for infrastructure projects, for education and training in development of local businesses, and for research and development.

The European Social Fund (ESF) helps the long-term unemployed, young job-seekers, people excluded from the labour market, promotes equal opportunities, adaptation to changes in industry, job stability and growth, people's capabilities in the scientific fields, and education and training systems
The Programme is structured as follows:

• Priority 1 - Developing a diverse and dynamic business base
  This aims to modernise the large traditional manufacturing base and capitalise on a number of high growth sectors. It will do this by:
  a) Supporting Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in established sectors, b) Supporting SMEs in high growth sectors and
  c) Underpinning the competitiveness of SMEs
  Priority 1 is delivered through a variety of ways in the West Midlands. Contact GOWM for further information on 0121 212 5085.
• Priority 2 - Creating the conditions for employment growth
  This aims to create the conditions to enable the region to realise its full potential and will assist in the other objectives of securing employment for the most disadvantaged communities in the region.
  This Priority is delivered through Strategic Packages and complements Regeneration Zones. The contact for the Walsall, Wolverhampton and South Staffordshire Strategic Package is Adiba Farrah on 01902 554039.
• Priority 3 - Regenerating communities
  This focuses on areas where there is a combination of problems which creates an area of exclusion (unemployment, poor skills, low incomes, poor housing, high crime
  In Wolverhampton this Priority is delivered through an Action Plan and the contact is Mike Holden at the Wolverhampton Network Consortium (WNC) on 01902 572020

Horizontal themes
There are three horizontal themes underpinning the whole programme that every project bidding for funding should include as part of their bid:

• Innovation
• Environmental Sustainability
• Equality of Opportunity

www.go-wm.gov.uk

(^ Top of Page)