Area of investment and support

Area of investment and support: Research Infrastructure for Conservation and Heritage Science (RICHeS)

The RICHeS programme is supporting excellence and collaboration within heritage and conservation science across all four nations of the UK.

The funding will unlock access to heritage science facilities by creating a distributed infrastructure of heritage science collections and equipment.

Budget:: Long-term £80 million commitment
Duration:: RICHeS launched on 1 October 2024, and the 31 funded projects will go live in 2026 to 2027.
Partners involved:: Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)

The scope and what we're doing

Heritage science is the application of scientific techniques and technologies to improve our understanding, conservation, management and engagement with cultural heritage.

We have designed the RICHeS programme to maximise the research, development and innovation potential of UK heritage science by increasing sector effectiveness, efficiency and excellence.

It will:

catalyse the development of an informed, collaborative and innovative UK heritage science community
ensure that the heritage science sector has the capability and the capacity to meet user demand and deliver world-class scientific excellence
ensure that heritage science equipment, expertise, resources and research data are findable and accessible to users, available to external stakeholders, and can be used by a range of partners

Our RICHeS headquarters team is based in a new AHRC office in north-west England, at the heart of Sci-Tech Daresbury.

Why we're doing it

RICHeS will increase sector resilience and accessibility, ensuring that heritage and conservation science benefits a diverse range of users and audiences.

By fostering collaboration and innovation, RICHeS will unite the community, securing the UK’s position as a global leader in heritage science and conservation.

The RICHeS distributed research infrastructure will be accessible, supported by the Heritage Science Data Service, RICHeS central digital repository. It will streamline efficiencies across the sector and empower cutting-edge research throughout the UK.

Past projects, outcomes and impact

The programme funds 31 projects across the UK:

17 host facilities
13 host collections
the Heritage Science Data Service

Who to contact

RICHeS team

Email: riches@ahrc.ukri.org

We aim to respond within two working days.

Find out more about RICHeS through:

Last updated: 25 March 2025