Heritage and Higher Education

Over the past 18 months, with the support of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Culture and Community Engagement team at the University of Bedfordshire has been on a journey to explore connections between higher education and heritage.

In conversation with universities, arts, heritage, and community organisations nationally, the team has examined the challenges that our sectors face and tested a series of interconnected solutions, with the aim of connecting heritage and higher education in a needs-led and sector-sensitive way.

Join us at our Luton campus on the 23rd October 2024 as we share our findings from this work and launch a series of brand new resources intended to support the development of mutually beneficial collaborations between heritage and higher education.

At this half-day networking event, we will hear directly from members of the Culture and Community Engagement team about thier learnings as they lead a series of presentations and engagement workshops. We will also hear insights from the Head of Innovation and Partnerships at the National Lottery Heritage Fund, George Stanley-Jones, as well as representatives from universities and heritage organisations from across the UK.

You can read more about our project with the Heritage Innovation Fund, which made this event possible, here.

The event is being held in the Post-Graduate Centre Lounge, on the ground floor of our Post-Graduate Centre Building. The building is marked as P on the campus map, which can be accessed at the bottom of this webpage.

The full address of our Luton Campus is:

University of Bedfordshire, University Square, Luton, LU1 3JU

If you are travelling by car, there are a number of pay and display car parks in close proxemity to campus:

Luton Point - Central - Garage (parkopedia.co.uk) (good accessibility)

Vicarage Street - Garage (parkopedia.co.uk) (very accessible)

If you require a parking space on campus due to access needs, please let us know via the event booking form.

If you are cycling, please note that there are dedicated spaces for bicycle parking outside of the Campus Centre (G on the campus map).

If you are travelling by train, Luton station is approximately 10-15 minutes away on foot.

Please note that up to £50 is available to support your travel to the event. Further details about how to claim this will be available when you book your space.

Lunch will be served on arrival and light refreshment will be made available at various intervals throughout the event.

Please indicate your dietary requirements in the booking form.

The University of Bedfordshire’s Culture and Community Engagement team (formerly Arts and Culture Projects) brings together university expertise with civic and sector partners, acting as a bridge nationally and locally between higher education, business and local people. Harnessing institutional interdisciplinary research and leading on practical projects, the team focuses on issues and challenges that are locally relevant and nationally significant.

You can read more about the team by visiting our webpage.

As the largest dedicated funder of the UK’s heritage, The National Lottery Heritage Fund’s vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future as set out in our strategic plan, Heritage 2033. 

Over the next ten years, we aim to invest £3.6billion raised for good causes by National Lottery players to bring about benefits for people, places and the natural environment. 

We help protect, transform and share the things from the past that people care about, from popular museums and historic places, our natural environment and fragile species, to the languages and cultural traditions that celebrate who we are. 

We are passionate about heritage and committed to driving innovation and collaboration to make a positive difference to people’s lives today, while leaving a lasting legacy for future generations to enjoy. 

You can read more about the National Lottery Heritage Fund by visiting thier webpage.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

University of Bedfordshire Postgraduate Centre Lounge, University Square, Luton, United Kingdom