The Architectural Heritage Fund (AHF) is very pleased to announce that it has awarded additional grants through the Heritage Revival Fund, with £424,738 given in support of nine different projects in June, ranging from a former parish school in Gateshead to a historic coaching inn in Great Torrington.
The Heritage Revival Fund is delivered in partnership with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and Historic England, and forms part of the government’s wider £270 million investment in arts and culture. It was created to help community organisations to take ownership of, adapt and reuse the local heritage assets that matter to them - with a specific focus on town centre locations - transforming them into thriving spaces that meet their needs.
You can find out more about two of the projects in receipt of new grants from the programme by reading on below.
15 Silver Street, Masham - Peacock & Verity Community Spaces Ltd
Images: The exterior of 15 Silver Street and the interior, where people are cleaning up the building. Images courtesy of Peacock & Verity Community Spaces Ltd.
Located in the heart of Masham, 15 Silver Street has been the main town grocers for over 300 years, providing the community with a vital but high-quality provision. Most of the building dates back to the 18th Century, with later extensions added in the Victorian period. During its history, it has also functioned as a bakehouse, an Edwardian tea room, and a hotel. Today, it is the primary property on the main street. However, it has fallen into significant disrepair.
Peacock and Verity Community Spaces has developed a project that incorporates the unusual history, heritage and community value of 15 Silver Street. It wishes to transform the building into Peacock and Verity, a community space for the future which celebrates Masham’s past. This will comprise of four affordable housing units for local people; the bakehouse training centre, a multi-use heritage and skills centre; an Edwardian tearoom; and a living-history 1850s grocers and post office, providing a visitor heritage experience alongside critical retail and banking services.
The new AHF Project Development Grant, awarded through the Heritage Revival Fund, will fund administrative and technical support to help progress the project into the next stage, including project management, architects, business planning, community development work, and specialist accounting.
The beginning of the 15 Silver Street transformation was recently documented on TV. You can watch all episodes of ‘Our Yorkshire Shop: A Victorian Restoration’ on Channel 4.
To find out more about Peacock and Verity, please visit: https://www.peacockandverity.org.uk/
Creating a future life for St Just Miners’ Chapel – St Just Miners’ Chapel
Images: The interior of St Just Miners' Chapel (credit - Phil Pierce) and The Oggymen performing at the Chapel (credit - Sam Breeze).
Built in 1833, this Grade II*-listed Chapel is unique in its connection to the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site. It is a large building that dominates the town and the surrounding landscape. Once a mining community hub, it was built to house over 1,000 members across two stories, with tiered seating in the gallery. It also has an adjoining hall built as a vestry and school room, which is now used as a Community Hall and kitchen. The Chapel is recognised as an ‘Asset of Community Value’ and is on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register. In 2024, the Methodist Church announced their planned disposal of the building, putting its future at risk.
St Just Miners’ Chapel was established to ensure that the doors to the Chapel and Community Hall stay open. Since it was put up for sale, the charity has been campaigning to acquire the building for the community; having reached the fundraising target for purchase, its focus now turns to restoring the Chapel and developing it for use as a large-scale, year-round performance venue, serving the village of St Just and the wider community of West Penwith.
The new AHF Project Development Grant, awarded through the Heritage Revival Fund, will take the project from feasibility through to RIBA Stage 3. In turn, this will enable St Just Miners’ Chapel to refine its funding strategy and costs, and to begin fundraising for adaptation works.
To find out more about St Just Miners’ Chapel, please visit: https://www.stjustminerschapel.com/
In addition to these two awards, seven more grants were awarded through the Heritage Revival Fund in June. The other projects in receipt of support are:
For more information and guidance on the Heritage Revival Fund, see our England Grants Page.
