HLF supports Morecambe Bay conservation bid
The Heritage Lottery Fund has awarded grant support towards preserving the distinctive landscape of Morecambe Bay as part of a national initiative.
Eleven sites won first-round passes totaling £18.3m through the Landscape Partnership programme.
The money will go towards 'schemes that provide long-term social, economic and environmental benefits for rural areas'.
Conservation managers in Morecambe Bay will Morecambe Bay, straddling Cumbria and Lancashire, won a first-round pass to bid for £2m, including £100,000 development funding. A first-round pass means that money has been set aside by the Heritage Lottery Fund for the scheme in question. It does not guarantee funding, but is an indication of positive support. The applicant then progresses to the second round and submits a further, fully-developed application to secure the full award.
The HLF said: "Morecambe Bay is famed for its vast inter-tidal sand and mudflats, spectacular views and outstanding diversity of wildlife. The Morecambe Bay Partnership's vision for this landscape will promote the natural and cultural heritage of the Bay whilst also helping to address potential issues associated with climate change. A range of training opportunities, including archaeological fieldwork, oral history workshops, surveying, habitat management and restoration, guide training and sustainable farming, will be developed in order to give local people a greater sense of ownership and knowledge to maintain the area in the future."
The other landscapes around the country to receive HLF support were:
- Island of Lindisfarne, spectacular coastline in North Northumberland known as 'The Cradle of Christianity'
- Glens of Antrim, nine spectacular glens on the Antrim Cost running down into the North Channel
- Gower, an unspoilt, much-visited peninsula to the west of Swansea and one of the first ever designated Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty
- Wandle Valley, a green corridor in a dense urban area with the River Wandle flowing from Croydon through to Wandsworth and the River Thames
- Lomond Hills, a distinctive natural landmark of two volcanic sills with some of Scotland's oldest examples of small-scale mining and limestone quarrying
- River Tay, a rift valley below Perth and the only place in Scotland where the rare bearded tit breeds
- South Dorset Ridgeway, a picturesque stretch of land between Dorchester and Weymouth dating from the Neolithic and Bronze Ages
- Stiperstones and Corndon Hill, two upland ridges which bear witness to the Shropshire Hill's long history of mining and quarrying
- Suffolk Heritage Coast, a narrow coastal strip stretching from Felixstowe to Kessingland with low-lying shingle beaches and estuaries
- Lower Derwent Valley, along the River Derwent between Matlock and Derby, this part of Derbyshire allegedly inspired the nursery rhyme 'Rock-a-bye Baby'.
