Support the Emerging Talent Programme
Help us empower new voices in the heritage sector
Why it matters
The heritage sector faces a significant diversity gap, and there is strong evidence that diverse organisations are more successful.
By bringing in a wider range of voices, backgrounds, and experiences, Historic England is helping the sector become more innovative and adaptable.
We want to bring fresh perspectives and ensures heritage conservation resonates with all communities.
What is the Emerging Talent Programme?
The programme follows a tiered model to introduce, prepare, and guide participants into heritage careers:
Emerging Talent Placements
Short-term paid placements (4-12 weeks) offer hands-on experience at Historic England to equip participants with essential skills, boost their confidence, and ignite their passion for heritage work.
Step Up Placements
After completing an Emerging Talent placement, participants can apply for a six-month salaried trainee role to deepen their expertise and secure full-time employment in the sector.
Who can apply?
Both programmes are targeted at young people:
- from Black, Asian, minority ethnic backgrounds
- with disabilities or neurodiverse
- from economically disadvantaged situations
Participants gain valuable hands-on experience of working in the heritage sector, developing skills to enable them to take their next steps into a heritage career.
Our partners
We’re working with a diverse range of partners to help the programme reach underrepresented groups within the heritage sector, including The Mobility, Blueprint for All, The Leonard Cheshire Foundation, Career Ready and Barbassa.
The Impact
During 2022 and 2023, 30 participants took part in the Emerging Talent programme.
Feedback has been positive, with 100% of participants expressing a greater interest in a heritage career:
“The placement has opened up a whole load of other career paths for me...working with Historic England has made me much more likely to apply for jobs in this field.”
Participants also felt equipped with the tools and resources to look for heritage jobs, inspiring them in their next career steps:
“I learnt more about how multi-faceted the heritage sector can be, and so there may be more suitable opportunities to work in the sector than I previously imagined. For example, I’m interested in the community engagement part of heritage and wasn’t aware of that before.”
How you can help
To expand this successful programme, we are seeking additional funding to provide:
- Five new Emerging Talent Placements (£4,000 per placement)
- Six new Step Up Placements (£15,000 per placement)
Your support will help shape a more diverse, dynamic future for the heritage sector.
Please contact us for further information or donate online:
We are immensely grateful for the support we've received from The Mercers' Company and Benefact Trust, who are generously funding several placements.