Heritage at Risk Capital Fund: Guidance

1. Priorities

• Your project must match one or more of Historic England's priorities, which are to:
  • Help more people to connect with, enjoy and benefit from the historic environment
  • Use heritage to improve civic pride, prosperity, and wellbeing
  • Achieve a positive change and sustainable future for historic places, including buildings, landscapes, archaeological sites, and marine assets
  • Ensure heritage plays an important role in the fight to limit and manage the effects of climate change

2. Criteria

• Your project must be in England
• Applicants must have legal responsibility for the repair of the property, which includes those who:
  • Own the property outright
  • Hold a full repairing lease which has at least 21 years to run
  • Demonstrate that they have an agreement to acquire the property in question either outright or by a full repairing lease of at least 21 years

• Your project must have strong benefits for the local community
• Your project must be in an area of England ranked 1 to 3 on the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) or, if not in an IMD 1 to 3 area, serve communities in one
• Your project must be related to the types of buildings and/or assets we will consider, which are:
  • A building or asset listed at Grade I or II*
  • A building listed at Grade II, or an undesignated asset of significant historic or architectural interest, located within a Conservation Area
  • A scheduled monument
  • A park or garden registered at Grade I or II*
  • Grade II buildings, historic assets, and parks and gardens which are of high community value outside a Conservation Area will be considered where the project delivers considerable public benefit
  • Publicly owned designated assets. Eligible historic sites owned by public bodies such as Local Authorities, universities, NHS institutions, free schools, academies, and provided they are not part of their operational estate
  • Private dwellings, places of worship and commercial buildings are only exceptionally considered

The National Heritage List for England is the official record of all listed buildings, scheduled monuments and registered parks and gardens. You can access it via the Historic England website by visiting www.historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/

Your local authority's planning department will be able to advise you on whether your property is in a Conservation Area.

• Your project must involve the type of repair, conservation and conversion activities we will consider, which are:
  • Capital works, including repair and preservation. Costs covered may include professional fees, non-recoverable VAT, and insurance
  • Project development. This may include research, investigations, testing, and monitoring (such as energy audits), as well as condition surveys, management plans, reuse studies, feasibility assessments, material procurement, case studies, and accessibility audits. Please note: Standalone Project Development activities are not eligible, and must be part of a broader programme of capital works
  • Temporary protection of vacant buildings. Includes securing empty buildings through urgent repairs, temporary protective and security measures, fire prevention, and environmental upkeep (for example, controlling vegetation and wildlife). Light-touch modifications for short-term adaptive reuse may also be considered
  • Adaptive reuse. Support for modifications that help eligible assets remain functional, including adaptations for reuse and/or accessibility. This includes works to first fit out to enable new uses of a building
  • Minor repairs and maintenance. Minor repairs and maintenance are not eligible unless they:
    • Are an essential part of a larger overall grant project to enable reuse
    • Occur in the same location/building
    • Are cost-effective when done alongside the larger repair project
  • Improvements and alterations. Improvements and alterations are not eligible (other than works included under Adaptive reuse above) unless works that enhance resilience and usability are:
    • Are an essential part of a larger overall project to enable reuse
    • Are cost-effective when done alongside the larger repair project
    • Support climate change resilience
    • Are part of a whole-building approach as outlined in the Historic England published technical guidance

3. Objectives

The Heritage at Risk Capital Fund's objectives are to:

• Prevent the irrecoverable loss of at-risk heritage assets, ensuring the continuity and survival of England's distinct heritage landscape and its heritage value
• Enhance the character and appearance of local areas through the repair and upkeep of heritage assets, impacting how people feel pride in their place
• Increase the number, scale and diversity of heritage assets renovated and in use in the most deprived communities in England
• Support local economic growth by maintaining/increasing the number of viable heritage sites that contribute to the visitor economy and by increasing the market for heritage-related construction

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