Category: Industrial heritage

Kempton Steam Museum Awarded NLHF Grant to Connect New Audiences With the Story of London’s Clean Water

Kempton Steam Museum Awarded NLHF Grant to Connect New Audiences With the Story of London’s Clean Water

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Kempton Steam Museum has been awarded a £90,000 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) to connect people of all ages with the role of clean water in London’s past and present. The project will enable an Audience Development Consultant to develop a strategy to increase visitor numbers and attract new audiences from the local community and beyond. It will also enable a Learning Consultant to develop digital learning materials targeted at Key Stage 1 and 2 that are accessible to all.

Kempton Steam Museum, located at the Kempton Park Pumping Station in southwest London, showcases the world’s largest operational triple-expansion steam engine and a rich collection of historical artifacts and technical drawings. Without this funding from the Heritage Fund, its stories would remain undiscovered by many.

Three new part-time members of staff will build capacity across the museum in a variety of ways. Firstly, to achieve Museum Accreditation by summer 2026, secondly, to implement strategies to increase visitor numbers and attract new audiences, and thirdly to manage volunteers. This initiative will expand our visitor demographic and foster stronger connections with underrepresented groups, local organisations, schools and families. In the long-term, the project will build a resilient and sustainable museum, strengthen the network of groups and organisations working together for the benefit of the local community in Hounslow and raise public awareness of the importance of clean water. Valerie Mills from Kempton Steam Museum said: “We are thrilled to have received this support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to build a museum fit for the future!”

Kempton Steam Museum is an independent museum in London governed by the Kempton Great Engines Trust. The Trust, a registered Charity, was formed in 1995 with the aim to preserve the historic steam pumping engines at Kempton Park Pumping Station and make them accessible to the public. All restoration work and the running of the museum is undertaken entirely by a team of volunteers.

Kempton Steam Museum will be running Steam Weekends throughout the project. The museum is open from March to December offering special events throughout the year. You can follow @Kempton Steam Museum on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok and or visit their website at https://kemptonsteam.org/

Industrial Sites Listed by Historic England in 2025

Industrial Sites Listed by Historic England in 2025

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199 sites in England were newly protected by the DCMS on the recommendation of Historic England during 2025, including 173 listed structures, 21 scheduled monuments, and five parks and gardens. Ranging from a Neolithic burial mound dating to 3400 BC in the Yorkshire Dales to an exceptionally rare shipwreck lost in 1903 known as the Pin Wreck in Dorset, the newly protected sites include a number of industrial heritage structures.

Industrial heritage sites newly protected are:

  • Adams Heritage Centre, 17 Main Street, Littleport, Cambridgeshire
  • Cast-iron guideposts (finger posts), Ashley, Cheshire
  • Cleveland Bay public house and proto-railway station, Durham
  • Cast-iron coal duty boundary markers, Essex
  • Cowran Bridge, Skellion Bridge and revetment walls to Cowran cutting on the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway
  • Drive Cottage and former motor garage, Devon
  • Electricity junction boxes, Worcester
  • Flockton Wagonway Viaduct, West Yorkshire
  • Havenstreet railway station building, Isle of Wight
  • K6 telephone kiosk, Barnsley
  • K6 telephone kiosk, St Andrews Street, Cambridgeshire
  • K8 telephone kiosk, Ferndown, Dorset
  • Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal milestones
  • Railway Overbridge, Swanage, Dorset
  • Sheringham Railway Station, Norfolk
  • Swanage locomotive shed, turntable pit and retaining wall, Dorset
  • Submarine telephone cable hauler and gantry at Enderby’s Wharf, Royal Borough of Greenwich
  • Turnbridge Mills (Hirst’s Mill), spinning block, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire
  • Weybourne Railway Station, Norfolk

Several industrial sites also recieved increased protection, including Draper’s Windmill, Kent, upgraded from II to II* listing. For further details of all new listings follow this link: https://historicengland.org.uk/whats-new/news/19-remarkable-places-granted-protection-in-2025/

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Industrial Heritage Sites in England Continued to Struggle with Visitor Numbers and Finance in 2025

Industrial Heritage Sites in England Continued to Struggle with Visitor Numbers and Finance in 2025

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A survey of industrial heritage organisations in England during the second half of 2025 has indicated that a majority of sites have still not seen visitor numbers return to pre-pandemic 2019 levels, that volunteer recruitment remains difficult, and that a record number of sites have closed. The survey of industrial heritage organisations was carried out by the industrial Heritage Survey project during the regional industrial heritage network meetings run as part of the project.

71 industrial heritage organisations attended 10 in-person regional network meetings between June and December 2025. All the organisations reported an increase in visitor numbers, but a majority reported that these numbers had not returned to pre-pandemic 2019 levels. This trend was noted in the wider museum sector in England, in the Annual Museum Survey undertaken by Museum Development England with support from Arts Council England. Worryingly, 2025 saw a rise in industrial museum closures to eight sites, compared to 2024, a record number of closures since the project started tracking these in 2020, with industrial sites being particularly vulnerable to closure compared to the wider museum sector.

Furthermore, industrial heritage sites reported that the recruitment of volunteers remained difficult for many sites, although numbers a majority of sites have recovered to pre-pandemic levels, a trend in line with the Annual Musuem Survey. All the industrial heritage organisations attending the regional network meetings noted that the continuing rise in the costs of fuel, heating, and maintenance was putting a strain on day-to-day finances and reserves.

The Museum of Cannock Chase, which closed in April 2025. Image copyright Dr Michael Nevell.
Sandford Awards 2026 Now Open for Heritage Submissions

Sandford Awards 2026 Now Open for Heritage Submissions

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Entries for the Sandford Awards 2026 are now open to all heritage organisations large and local, urban and rural, across the UK that have a site and/or a collection and deliver a formal learning programme.

The Sandford Awards provide a framework for success whether you are looking to gain the recognition your learning programmes deserve or seeking to develop the quality of your learning provision. The closing date for applications is Friday 13 February 2026. The winners in 2025 included several industrial-related sites: Bridging the Tamar Visitor and Learning Centre; the Chiltern Open Air Museum; Clifton Suspension Bridge Museum; Cranwell Aviation Heritage Museum; and The Food Museum.

For more details on the awards frollow this link: https://www.heritageeducationtrust.org/about-the-sandford-award

Greenwich Industrial History Books

Greenwich Industrial History Books

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The listing of the submarine telephone cable hauler and gantry at Enderby’s Wharf in Greenwich this year, is a reminder of the area’s rich industrial heritage. The gantry dates from between 1897 and 1907, whilst the cable hauler was installed in 1954 specifically to assist in the loading of TAT-1, the first successful transatlantic telephone cable, which went into operation in 1956. According to Historic England, it laid the foundations for internet communication, helping to connect England with the rest of the world.

You can read more about the world class industrial heritage and archaeology of the area by exploring a series of books on industrial Greenwich by local historian Mary Mills. These publications cover shipbuilding, telecommunications, the gas industries, and many other industries.

Local Communities Invited to Submit Their Traditions to a New ‘UK Living Heritage’ Inventory

Local Communities Invited to Submit Their Traditions to a New ‘UK Living Heritage’ Inventory

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The UK Government has launched a call for submissions to the UK’s first-ever national inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH). Also known as Living Heritage, the resulting inventory will help to celebrate cultural traditions and highlight their contribution to communities and the economy. It is the first major step following UK ratification of the 2003 UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.

DCMS said living heritage encompasses practices passed down through generations, with examples ranging from tartan weaving and dry-stone walling, to cèilidh dancing or Gloucestershire’s cheese-rolling, Eisteddfodau, or Burn’s night suppers. It could also include traditions brought to the UK by immigrant communities, such as the Notting Hill Carnival and steel-drumming, it said.

Heritage Minister Baroness Twycross said activities such as Highland Dancing, and the carving of Welsh love spoons “from the rich tapestry of UK culture and identity. These crafts, customs and celebrations are often what makes people feel proud of who they are, where they come from and where they live. They also boost local economies and businesses. Whatever living heritage communities value, we want to hear about it. I encourage people to get together and share their traditions through this national conversation. “

Submission must be made by the communities practicing the living heritage under the following seven categories:

  • Culinary Practices
  • Oral expressions
  • Performing Arts
  • Social Practices
  • Nature, Land and Spirituality
  • Crafts
  • Sports and Games

Details on how to submit, including support and advice, can be found at http://www.livingheritage.unesco.org.uk. Submissions for the inventory close Friday 27 March 2026. If you would like to attend a DCMS information session to learn more about making a submission to the inventory, click here.

More details here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/from-cheese-rolling-to-bagpiping-uk-launches-search-for-traditions-that-define-our-communities

AIA Grant & Award Deadlines for 2026

AIA Grant & Award Deadlines for 2026

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The Association for Industrial Archaeology have a variety of grants and awards for industrial archaeology and heritage available for 2026. These are to encourage improved standards of recording, research, conservation, and publication within the sector. 

The grants support industrial heritage and archaeology conservation projects in the UK, and research projects on industrial archaeology. They are open to non-members as well as members of the Association.

The awards are presented to an individual or groups who have made a significant contribution to industrial archaeology, for example in research, publication, recording or conservation. The awards attract local and national publicity, and the recipients are encouraged to publish their projects. Most awards have cash prizes and are usually presented annually at the AIA Conference, at which winners will be encouraged to talk about their work and present posters or displays on it if appropriate.

The deadline for the following categories is 31st January 2026 (more details in the links):

The AIA also offer Restoration Grants of up to £20,000. The deadline for these is the 31st March. More details in the link below:

Midland Mills Group Talk by Millwright Paul Selwood, 9 December 2025

Midland Mills Group Talk by Millwright Paul Selwood, 9 December 2025

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The Midlands Mills Group is hosting a free online talk on 9 December 2025 by Millwright Paul Sellwood. He will be discussing his work as a millwright. Paul and his firm have been involved in many wind and water mill projects over the years, most recently in the Midlands, putting up the sails on Chesterton Windmill.

The Midland Mills Group invites anyone interested to join the event. The link and other relevant details are:

Join Zoom Meeting https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82695842305?pwd=ow7Zl6VSluVpuh2AgPzHJajDT14Bw2.1

Meeting ID: 826 9584 2305 Passcode: 728071

Chesterton Windmill undergoing repairs. Image courtesy of SPAB.

Stroudwater Textile Trust is Looking for Guides, Demonstrators, and Welcomers

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The Stroudwater Textile Trust are looking for volunteers at their two museums near Stroud. There are many ways of getting involved in volunteering with the Stroudwater Textile Trust. From welcoming visitors to their mills to sparing a few hours to work at home or to help restore historic machine, your support is really important to the Trust, and you will find volunteering both enjoyable and rewarding.

The Trust offers training in using both hand looms and power looms, as well as wider training. The museums are open from April to September on weekends and occasional weekdays. Information about the Trust is on our website, or e-mail chair@stroudtextiletrust.org.uk.

To get involved follow this link: https://www.stroudtextiletrust.org.uk/volunteering/

The Stroudwater Textile Trust is a Registered Charity run entirely by volunteers. The Trust was established in 1999 by local people wanting to promote awareness of the historic woollen industry in the Stroud valleys, to preserve some of its important machinery and to celebrate contemporary textiles. The Trust runs a fully-accredited museum at Dunkirk Mill in Nailsworth with a working waterwheel, and also a weaving shed at Gigg Mill nearby, which has a recently-restored vintage power loom. We also arrange visits to St Mary’s Mill in Chalford from time to time, where there is a Tangye steam engine. Dunkirk Mill and Gigg Mill are open regularly through the spring and summer months.

Volunteers at Stroudwater Textile Trust. Image courtesy of Stroudwater Textile Trust.

Friends of Chain Bridge Forge Launch Crowd-Funding Appeal to Teach Teenagers Blacksmithing Skills Using VR

Friends of Chain Bridge Forge Launch Crowd-Funding Appeal to Teach Teenagers Blacksmithing Skills Using VR

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The Friends of Chain Bridge Forge have lunched a crowd-funding appeal to teach traditional Blacksmithing to young individuals aged 13-16, blending heritage craftsmanship with cutting-edge virtual innovation. Through collaboration with the National Saturday Club, and led by experienced Blacksmith Ryan Atkin, participants will develop foundational skills in metalwork and have the chance to craft unique handmade items.

This new project follows on from 2024’s successful National Saturday Club, where Chain Bridge Forge trained young people in blacksmithing. To donate to the new VR project follow this link: https://www.spacehive.com/forging-futures-skills–vr-fusion.

Chain Bridge Forge is a short walk from Spalding town centre, alongside the Welland river and is open for bespoke commissions or blacksmithing workshops. The Forge has its origins in the mid-1700s, but the current building was constructed in the early nineteenth century. In the 1980s, nearing retirement and with the building in a poor state of repair, the then blacksmith, Mr Dodd, approached the South Holland District Council (SHDC) to take on the forge. After two years of discussions the site was purchased from him by SHDC for the nominal fee of £1, on September 20th 1988. In 2011 The Friends of Chain Bridge Forge were formed and took over the Forge on a 25 year lease. The Heritage Lottery Fund subsequently awarded the Forge £50,000 to restore the site and make it accessible, which opened in 2012. This award was followed by a further £10,000 to record the history of the community.

Follow this link for more news about the forge: https://chainbridgeforge.co.uk/

Teenagers being taught balcksmithing skills. Image courtesy of Friends of Chain Bridge Forge.