Policy & Practice: Briefing - Local history can be fun if packagedright

We've moved on a bit from heritage as stately homes, haven't we?

Indeed we have, but much of the progress in getting young people involved in heritage projects is actually quite recent. The Heritage Lottery Fund has handed out grants to youth projects since 1994, but there are few projects designed specifically for young people and many youth workers remain to be convinced that heritage can be attractive to young people. The fund is two years into a five-year strategic plan to change all this and its new publication, Practical Partnerships, shows what can be done.

What's the key aim of the strategy then? Two things. First, widening the notion of what constitutes heritage so that it includes the elements people hold dear such as beloved community landmarks, traditions and so on. Second, to involve a wider cross section of the public. The Young Roots programme went national in 2002 to find new ways of involving young people in heritage projects.