National Lottery Heritage Fund

How the National Lottery Heritage Fund has supported Suffolk Wildlife Trust

The National Lottery Heritage Fund is the largest dedicated funder of heritage in the UK. Since it's inception in 1994, Suffolk Wildlife Trust worked closely with the Fund to connect local communities with their natural heritage, to save precious wildlife-rich landscapes, and to create new wild habitats to help bring back rare and endangered species. 

Since 1995, the Heritage Fund has invested a total of £11.6million in 36 Suffolk Wildlife Trust projects in Suffolk - including the purchase of a total of 1,700 acres of land for nature.

Timeline of Heritage Fund support

Sep 1995 - visitor facilities built at Redgrave & Lopham Fen; our oldest reserve, and one of the most important wetlands in Europe. The construction of visitor facilities helped to open the reserve to more visitors for the first time.

Sep 1996 - purchase of Foxburrow Farm, and initial habitat restoration works to create Foxburrow nature reserve. The reserve is also one of the UK's earliest examples of a "rewilding" project, which the Heritage Fund was keen to invest in.

Apr 1997 - installation of new interpretation boards on 26 nature reserves; helping to educate and inspire visitors to our reserves.

July 1997 - heathland restoration works across the Sandlings region of Suffolk. Many of the works were targeted to create new habitat for adder - which are nationally scarce but they have important strongholds along the Suffolk coast.

Oct 1997 to Nov 1998 - a series of land purchases and habitat restoration projects across the county, including the purchase of Dingle Marshes and early parts of Carlton Marshes, and the creation of Hen Reedbeds.

Nov 1998 - Wildlife on Your Doorstep project; which inspired and supported urban communities across the UK - including Suffolk - to create spaces for nature in their neighbourhoods.

Nov 2000 - our first Education Officer at Lackford Lakes, to host school and group visits to the reserve.

Apr 2001 - purchase and initial management works of Mickle Mere.

Jul 2002 - a series of grassroots youth activities across the county to connect local young people with the natural environment - inspiring future generations of wildlife conservationists and activists.

Oct 2003 - creation of the Suffolk Pond Project (now the Suffolk Pond Group) which kickstarted pond creation and restoration works on farmland and community land across the county.

May 2005 - purchase of Captain's Wood: one of Suffolk's most precious ancient woodlands, home to veteran oak trees, bat roosts, and spectcular bluebell displays.

Aug 2006 - Wild Learning programmes (now Wilder Training); which provide training for teachers and practitioners of Forest School and outdoor learning. By developing our "train the trainer" approach, we're making an even bigger impact on nature education in Suffolk.

May 2008 to May 2011 - funded a series of volunteer and education works at Bradfield Woods to encourage the learning and sharing of heritage woodland skills, including coppice management, whittling, and wood carving.

Dec 2011 - purchase of Knettishall Heath; one of the UK's best remnants of ancient, wild heathland - home to over 12,000 species.

Mar 2012 - Coastal Discovery projects in Suffolk. Coastal Discovery was a national Heritage Fund campaign from the Heritage Fund to support local communities to reconnect, protect and celebrate their coastal heritage. In Suffolk, projects included coastal habitat restoration, photography workshops, and storytelling.

Aug 2014 - Closer to Nature project in Ipswich; which connected young people and communities in the county-town with the natural environments in their urban neighbourhoods.

May 2016 - following the success of the Closer to Nature project, the Heritage Fund supported a follow-up campaign to make Ipswich the UK's most hedgehog-friendly town - which laid the foundation for future Wilder Communities activity and the establishment of hedgehogs as one of our Flagship Species in Suffolk.

Mar 2018 - creation of Carlton Marshes nature reserve as it is today at 1,000 acres, and the construction of the new visitor centre - cementing Carlton Marshes as the southern gateway to the Broads National Park. The Heritage Fund awarded us over £4million to create the 1,000 acre reserve - one of the largest grants ever given to a Wildlife Trust.

Feb 2024 - purchase and initial works at Worlingham Marshes; including habitat restoration, wetland creation, community activities, and storytelling projects. The funding also supported collaborations with neighbouring landowners and farmers to extend the wildlife impact of the reserve.