Grant offer for working class history projects

Strandline aims to reveal untold and uncelebrated stories from Paignton

Historic England has asked for applications from the south-west of England for its Everyday Heritage grants programme, which aims to celebrate working class histories.

Launched in 2022, the programme has already funded more than 100 projects with a total of £1.8m.

Projects looking to enable people to share untold stories about the places where they live can apply for grants of up to £25,000.

Previous projects supported include Bodmin at Work, which shared previously unseen photographs of working village lives and Strandline which explored the lives of working people in Paignton.

More than 500 original glass plate negatives were digitised in the Bodmin at Work project, including this one of a crowd watching Air Raid Precautions exercises in Honey Street in March 1940

This time the programme is looking to focus on buildings or places in rural and coastal locations with grants available for community-led and people-focused projects in Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Dorset.

Applications can be submitted from Friday 16 August until Monday 7 October.

Heritage Minister Sir Chris Bryant said: "The Everyday Heritage grants programme helps to uncover forgotten or overlooked stories that have been at the heart of working class communities so that they can be properly celebrated by future generations.

"I am delighted that people living in our many diverse rural and coastal towns and villages will have this opportunity to shine a spotlight on the stories and places that matter to them."

'Forgotten histories'

Duncan Wilson, chief executive of Historic England, said: “Heritage is all around us – it’s the pubs, factories, football clubs and council estates where most people have lived, worked and played for hundreds of years.

"But often the stories of ordinary people and places aren’t included in the history records and memories of their extraordinary impact on history fade away.

“This programme is all about funding community-led projects that will recognise and celebrate the lives of ordinary people.

"Over the past few years, projects have surpassed our expectations and now we hope that by focusing on rural and coastal heritage we can help communities uncover even more forgotten histories for us all to learn from and enjoy."