Bradford can use its special heritage to build on the legacy of City of Culture - Helen Featherstone
A visit to Bradford’s centenary square is a vibrant experience; often buzzing with excitement. Spotlighted by Bradford City of Culture 2025, the square boasts a number of historic features and heritage assets, which have really shone during 2025.
The heritage assets which make Bradford special have been there for centuries and are certainly here to stay. They are one of the reasons why Bradford is known as a top filming location, and they are crucial to creating Bradford’s unique sense of place, identity and to help people connect to their past.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund has been working with Bradford City of Culture, and others for several years to ensure that these historic gems continue to thrive and that Bradford can still be seen as a City of Culture long after 2025.
Since 1994 the Heritage Fund has invested over £62m in hundreds of projects across Bradford celebrating heritage; this can be anything from the past that people value and want to hand on to future generations. We are committed to continuing our support and building on the legacy created by Bradford 2025.
Last month Bradford Arts Centre, formerly called Kala Sangam, reopened its doors. The stunning Grade II listed building and former post office has undergone an incredible transformation. Its fresh new interior is now fit to welcome communities from across Bradford to share their heritage, and engage as an audience member, or as a participant with a host of workshops and performances.
It is people’s stories that bring buildings to life and therefore fitting that Bradford Arts Centre is also home to Bradford Community Radio, who will be housed in new state of the art studios, alongside other creative organisations. Heritage Fund support of £2.8m contributed towards the capital works, and a very meaningful community engagement programme.
Another key heritage asset supported by the Heritage Fund is Bradford Live. As you enter the old Odean Cinema you are immediately struck by the wealth of history housed within the walls of this spectacular building. An investment of £2m ensured that intricate heritage features were saved and lovingly restored, including the ornate gold and green art deco ballroom, and even the original boiler plant in the downstairs bar. When I visited, I was impressed by the considered preservation of the unique features, making it a truly special venue to see some fantastic shows.
St George’s Hall is another venue that underpins the Bradford 2025 programme. In 2016 the Heritage Fund supported the restoration of the Victorian concert hall, the city’s first grand public building, with funding of £1.6m. In the years following its popularity has gone from strength to strength, and it is a prime example of Heritage Fund’s commitment to supporting and investing in Bradford’s rich heritage.
The brand-new Sound and Vision galleries at the National Science and Media Museum opened in July thanks to Heritage Fund support of £3.4m.
With over 500 exhibits the new galleries explore how photography, film, television and sound technologies have shaped our past, present and future.
From the Cottingley fairies to live DJ sets they share fascinating UK wide stories. These galleries are rooted in Bradford, and a standout achievement is that they really are for everyone.
Working in collaboration with key audiences has ensured the galleries have inclusion and accessibility at their heart, and they are certain to attract visitors from far and wide for years to come.
Outside the city centre the Heritage Fund has also supported the Peace Museum to find a new home in Salt Mills, the UNESCO World Heritage Site Saltaire. The museum can now accommodate more visitors, allowing them to see the collection, and to enable more objects to be on display. It’s a move that has paid off, as their annual visitor figures have jumped from 3,000 to 40,000 people.
While the city centre has been energised with activities through the year, the natural heritage and green spaces of the district are also a real heritage asset to be valued.
The moors above Haworth provided a superb setting for the striking artworks of Bradford 2025’s Wild Uplands.
Bradford has many picturesque parks, which showcase a different side to the area, and was recently named as one of the Heritage Fund’s ‘Nature Towns and Cities’ grant recipients. A partnership between the Heritage Fund, National Trust and Natural England, this investment will seek to improve the quality of, and access to, urban green spaces across the district and ensure that its natural heritage will flourish as much as the cultural heritage for which Bradford has become so renowned.
All of this investment in key assets across the city will help to ensure Bradford remains a City of Culture with heritage at its heart.
Helen Featherstone is Director, England, North at The National Lottery Heritage Fund.