Background
The Heritage Places Strategic Initiative is a £200 million, 10-year investment (2023–2033) in 15 locations across the UK. As part of the Heritage 2033 strategy, it aims to place heritage at the heart of local placemaking and long-term heritage-led regeneration. The initiative responds to growing policy interest in place-based approaches and focuses on four key aims: increasing pride in place and enhancing the role of heritage in communities, building capacity of the heritage sector to contribute to placemaking, supporting integrated heritage schemes and promoting a people-centred approach that values everyone’s heritage.
Fortia Insight (formerly ERS and part of RSM UK Consulting LLP was commissioned to develop and embed an evaluation framework for the Heritage Places Initiative, supporting long-term impact measurement through to 2033. Working with local evaluators, Heritage Place partners and the Heritage Fund’s business insights team, the evaluation is guided by a collaboratively developed theory of change. It addresses the Heritage-Fund-defined research questions on both the initiative’s impact and how it is shaped by local context and programme design. Fortia Insight’ commission runs from March 2024 to January 2027, with the framework designed to support continued evaluation beyond that period.
Report linkChallenges
Defining and applying the concept of ‘place-based’ working across diverse local contexts and delivery models: This complexity makes it difficult to establish consistent measures of progress and impact. In response, the evaluation team developed a nested, place theories of change model, co-produced with local partners, to reflect local realities while supporting a coherent, initiative-wide evaluation framework and toolkit for long-term impact measurement.
Building foundations for strategic learning and legacy: With Fortia Insight’ evaluation commissioned only until 2027, a key challenge has been laying the groundwork for continued evaluation and learning through to 2033. To address this, the evaluation has focused on building capacity and fostering local ownership within Heritage Places. This includes co-developing tools with local stakeholders, taking a demand-led approach to support, positioning local actors as evaluation leaders and helping design a sustainable peer-to-peer learning network to ensure long-term engagement beyond the contract period
Impacts
At one-third of the way through the evaluation, an interim report has been produced, capturing early findings on the initiative’s design, delivery, local implementation and stakeholder experiences. These insights form the basis for the evaluation’s longer-term contribution, which focuses on supporting ongoing learning and shaping strategic direction throughout the Heritage 2033 strategy. Findings from the Year 1 interim report include the following:
The strategic rationale for Heritage Places remains strong, with progress aligning well to best practice in place-based working. The commitment to long-term investment is a stand-out feature.
Local context matters. Variations in capacity, existing strategies, relationships with the Heritage Fund and geographic scale have led to differing paces and approaches across the nine initial places.
Heritage Fund flexibility and openness to varied leadership models is welcomed; further streamlining applications would make development smoother for place leads and partners.
Support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund engagement teams is highly valued and fosters local ownership; clearer boundaries and more consistent facilitation would strengthen this even further.