The National Lottery Heritage Fund

The National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded The Rock Pool Project a £228,000 grant to support the Big Rock Pool Challenge, enabling communities across Southwest England to engage in marine conservation through fun and competitive BioBlitz Battle events.

The National Lottery Heritage Fund is the largest funder for the UK’s heritage. Using money raised by National Lottery players we support projects that connect people and communities to heritage. Our vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future. From historic buildings, our industrial legacy and the natural environment, to collections, traditions, stories and more. Heritage can be anything from the past that people value and want to pass on to future generations. We believe in the power of heritage to ignite the imagination, offer joy and inspiration, and to build pride in place and connection to the past.

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What the funding will achieve:

1. Saving Heritage: By engaging the public in monitoring marine species and supporting biosecurity efforts, the project helps protect the biodiversity of Southwest England’s rocky shores. The data collected will contribute to marine biodiversity conservation in the region and beyond.

2. Protecting the Environment: The project addresses biosecurity risks by educating participants on the identification and reporting of invasive species. These efforts will help protect the local ecosystems and prevent the spread of harmful species.

3. Inclusion, Access, and Participation: The Big Rock Pool Challenge is designed to be accessible to people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds. The interactive Bioblitz Battle events make marine conservation fun and inclusive, encouraging people from across the Southwest to engage in meaningful, hands-on environmental work.

4. Organisational Sustainability: The funding will enable the Rock Pool Project to expand this initiative throughout the Southwest, with long-term plans for sustainability through volunteer training and partnerships with local organisations. Project partners the Marine Biological Association will strengthen the project’s scientific influence and ensure its long-term impact on marine conservation.

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Follow @HeritageFundUK on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and visit www.heritagefund.org.uk for more information.