Have your say: National Lottery funding consultation closes 23 September
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has launched a call for evidence on the future of National Lottery good cause funding, and CIEEM members are encouraged to respond as individuals before the deadline.
About the consultation
National Lottery funding, through both the National Lottery Community Fund and the National Lottery Heritage Fund, has supported thousands of nature recovery, landscape restoration and community wildlife projects across the UK. This consultation will shape how that funding is prioritised in future, including whether the natural environment continues to be recognised as part of our shared heritage.
That matters because, as things stand, the call for evidence describes “heritage” mainly in terms of historic buildings, public parks and community archaeology – with no explicit reference to nature. Left unaddressed, this could see projects that restore habitats, protect species and support nature’s recovery lose out on funding that has historically been vital to their delivery.
Individual responses, in your own words, are a powerful way to make the case that:
- National Lottery funding is essential to meeting the Government’s legally binding nature and climate targets under the Environment Act 2021, and that the funding gap for nature is significant.
- Nature is heritage. Restoring habitats and landscapes should be recognised alongside historic buildings and archaeology within the Heritage Fund’s remit.
- Environment and Heritage funding both matter for nature. The natural environment sits across both categories, and both should continue to support it.
How to respond
- The consultation is open to both organisations and individuals. Please respond in your own capacity as an ecologist or environmental manager, sharing your professional experience of nature funding in action.
- Responding should only take 10-15 minutes.
- The consultation closes at midday on 23 September.
Every individual response adds to the evidence base showing how much National Lottery funding matters for nature’s recovery.
Please take a few minutes to have your say before the deadline.