Detail of a market town square including historic buildings repurposed as a gallery.
The Spanish Gallery, Bishop Auckland, County Durham. © Historic England Archive. Image reference DP 290649
The Spanish Gallery, Bishop Auckland, County Durham. © Historic England Archive. Image reference DP 290649

Levelling Up Places Service

On this page, you can find information about the Levelling Up Places (LUP) Service which offers support to organisations including local authorities in delivering culture, heritage, and sport-led regeneration projects.

About the service

From April 2023, seven Department of Media, Culture and Sport (DCMS) arm’s length bodies– Historic England, Arts Council England, Sport England, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, The National Lottery Community Fund, VisitEngland and the British Film Institute - joined forces to provide support and advice to councils and communities delivering culture-led regeneration projects as beneficiaries of the £4.8 billion Levelling Up Fund.

The Levelling Up Fund invests in infrastructure that improves everyday life across the UK, regenerating town centres and high streets and investing in cultural and heritage assets. Over £3.8 billion of funding has been awarded for 216 projects across two rounds, many of which are now underway.

With new funding from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, the Levelling Up Places Service team will collaborate with councils and other stakeholders to deliver Levelling Up Fund funded projects by signposting existing guidance, developing packages of practical support and facilitating knowledge sharing among project owners and stakeholders.

Who is eligible for the service?

The service is available to all organisations in England who are recipients of Rounds 1 and 2 of the Levelling Up Fund.  

A team of Co-ordinators and Advisors will provide expertise and resources in addition to accessing specialist support from the seven arm's length bodies through five regional liaison committees, or Area Towns Groups.

Organisations should note that the service is not able to provide resources or funding to help directly with project delivery; however, we can signpost existing funding sources available from partner bodies.

Our advice and support

The service is able to provide advice and support on a wide range of topics, including:

  1. Master planning and place-shaping
  2. Urban design and regeneration
  3. Collaborative community engagement, co-design and animating capital spaces/projects
  4. Development economics relating to heritage, sport, or arts
  5. Operating/Business models of cultural facilities
  6.  Access and inclusion on cultural capital developments
  7. Architectural design development (RIBA Plan of Work)
  8. Highways and Public Realm design principles
  9. Heritage conservation and archaeological risk management
  10. Programme/project management for cultural capital projects
  11. Sustainable cultural programming and audience development
  12. Retrofitting (zero carbon) measures

To help the Service team in their initial assessment of requests, please include the following information when contacting the Service:

  • LUF project reference and name (bid title);
  • The nature of the advice request (maximum of 500 words); and
  • Any time restrictions or deadlines relating to the advice request or project delivery timeline (maximum of 100 words).

Privacy

We will store and manage contact details and information to manage your enquiry. Project and advice details may be shared with the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. To learn more about how we use and protect your data, check our Privacy Policy.

Contact Levelling Up Places Service