The judges will be looking for excellence and innovation in the visitor experience, design, interpretation and storytelling, delivered successfully within the project brief and budget.

Entries should explain the thinking behind the project and demonstrate how audience insight, community participation or consultation helped to shape the finished exhibition. The judges will be looking for an experience in which design, collections, content and interpretation work together to engage, inform and inspire visitors.

Particular attention should be given to the impact of the project on the museum, gallery or heritage attraction, its visitors and its wider community of stakeholders. Please provide evidence of outcomes.

Full consideration will be given to the budget in relation to the size and scope of the project. Please include clear information about the project’s total delivery budget and total actual expenditure. All financial information will be treated in confidence.

As part of the final judging, every shortlisted project is likely to receive an independently conducted and anonymous visit. The assessor will experience the exhibition as an ordinary visitor and their observations will be considered by the Judges alongside the written submission and supporting material.

Designers and contractors may enter with the permission of their client. We recommend that the submission is made jointly and includes direct input from the museum or heritage organisation concerned.

⚠️IMPORTANT NOTES ⚠️

• Open to new museums and permanent (i.e. designed to be open for significantly more than 12 months) exhibitions opened within 2026 and located in the UK. Exhibitions located outside the UK should enter International Exhibition of the Year. Temporary or Touring Exhibitions should be entered into that category. 
• All entries require a series of questions to be answered and you must also submit a minimum of 6 good quality, relevant photos. You will also have an opportunity to provide video footage, which is recommended, and other supporting materials as you see fit. Register/log in to the entry platform and when you start your entry you will see a copy of the criteria and questions. You can save and re-draft your entry as much as you like, right up until deadline. 
• Please ensure you have read the FAQs and T&Cs on the How To Enter page and check the eligibility criteria before proceeding with your entry.
• Entry Fees apply to this category.

Entries for this award should highlight excellence in the creation of a temporary or touring exhibition, designed to be featured within a museum, gallery or heritage attraction. Particular attention should be given to the effectiveness of the exhibition in attracting new and diverse audiences. 

The judges will be looking for excellence and innovation in the visitor experience, design, interpretation and storytelling, delivered successfully within the project brief and budget.

Entries should explain the thinking behind the project and demonstrate how audience insight, community participation or consultation helped to shape the finished exhibition. The judges will be looking for an experience in which design, collections, content and interpretation work together to engage, inform and inspire visitors.

Particular attention should be given to the impact of the project on the museum, gallery or heritage attraction, its visitors and its wider community of stakeholders. Please provide evidence of outcomes.

Full consideration will be given to the budget in relation to the size and scope of the project. Please include clear information about the project’s total delivery budget and total actual expenditure. All financial information will be treated in confidence.

Designers and contractors may enter with the permission of their client. We recommend that the submission is made jointly and includes direct input from the museum or heritage organisation concerned.

All figures and costs are treated in confidence.

⚠️IMPORTANT NOTES ⚠️

• Open only to exhibitions outside of the UK, regardless of where the company or organisation entering is located. 
• All entries require a series of questions to be answered and you must also submit a minimum of 6 good quality, relevant photos. You will also have an opportunity to provide video footage, which is recommended, and other supporting materials as you see fit. Register/log in to the entry platform and when you start your entry you will see a copy of the criteria and questions. You can save and re-draft your entry as much as you like, right up until deadline. 
• Please ensure you have read the FAQs and T&Cs on the How To Enter page and check the eligibility criteria before proceeding with your entry.
• An entry fee applies to this category.

This is your chance to thank your volunteers!

So, if you would like to give a very public show of appreciation to your volunteer(s) simply nominate the individual or team you think most deserving. 

⚠️IMPORTANT NOTES ⚠️

• This category is FREE to enter
• Your nominated volunteer(s) must be volunteering at a UK organisation
• Along with your nomination you must also submit a minimum of 6 good quality, relevant photos. You will also have an opportunity to provide video footage, which is recommended. Register/log in to the entry platform and when you start your entry you will see a copy of the criteria and questions. You can save and re-draft your nomination as much as you like, right up until deadline. 
• Please ensure you have read the FAQs and T&Cs on the How To Enter page and check the eligibility criteria before proceeding with your entry.

We are seeking nominees who have a clear vision for their role in the future of our sector, who may inspire and motivate others and who may be actively working to drive positive change in the years to come.

The judges will look to reward those whose work is enhancing the sector through transformative and collaborative ideas and practices. Impact over a significant period, rather than just a short-term success, is important and consistency in achieving positive outcomes is a crucial criterion.

Entrants and nominees who have demonstrated the ability to collaborate with diverse stakeholders to achieve sector-wide improvements will be considered favourably.

You can nominate someone else, or you can make your own evidence-based submission.

Please refer to the How to Enter section for further details including eligibility information.

⚠️IMPORTANT NOTES ⚠️

• Open only to UK based organisations
• All entries require a series of questions to be answered and you must also submit a minimum of 6 good quality, relevant photos. You will also have an opportunity to provide video footage, which is recommended, and other supporting materials as you see fit. Register/log in to the entry platform and when you start your entry you will see a copy of the criteria and questions. You can save and re-draft your entry as much as you like, right up until deadline. 
• Please ensure you have read the FAQs and T&Cs on the How To Enter page and check the eligibility criteria before proceeding with your entry.
• This category is free to enter

HR, finance, cleaning, grounds maintenance, facilities and collections care staff are just a few of the eligible teams carrying out essential back-of-house work. If you are a smaller organisation without distinct departments, you may even wish to enter your entire team.

This important Award is intended to reward great teamwork which has had a positive impact and which makes a difference in the day-to-day running of your organisation.

The judges will be looking for evidence of consistent good practice, commitment to positive change, a collaborative approach and all-round outstanding performance.

This is a chance to show your appreciation for the positive impact that your nominated team has had on your organisation.

What better way to say thank you than to nominate them for Team of the Year?

• Open to UK organisations only – refer to the Eligibility section.
• Along with your nomination you must also submit a minimum of 6 good quality, relevant photos. You will also have an opportunity to provide video footage, which is recommended. Register/log in to the entry platform and when you start your entry you will see a copy of the criteria and questions. You can save and re-draft your nomination as much as you like, right up until deadline. 
• Please ensure you have read the FAQs and T&Cs on the How To Enter page and check the eligibility criteria before proceeding with your entry.
• An entry fee applies to this category

This important award is promoted in partnership with Association of Independent Museums (AIM).

This category looks beyond the initial welcome to consider the whole visitor journey. Entries might include improvements to pre-visit information, booking and arrival, orientation and wayfinding, front-of-house service, visitor facilities, staff culture, interpretation of the site or the ways in which visitor feedback is gathered and acted upon.

Tell us what prompted the work, what you wanted to improve and how visitors helped to shape your approach. The judges will be looking for evidence that changes were based on a clear understanding of visitor needs rather than assumption.

Please demonstrate the difference the work has made. Evidence might include visitor feedback, satisfaction levels, VAQAS score, repeat visits, dwell time, complaints, recommendations, staff feedback or changes in audience profile.

Projects of any size or budget will be considered. The judges will assess achievement in relation to the organisation’s circumstances and available resources.

All entries should demonstrate inclusive practice. Where the principal purpose of the work is to remove barriers and increase engagement for Disabled people, entrants should consider the separate Visitor Accessibility Award.

Please be clear about your objectives and define who the beneficiaries of the programme are/were. When describing your work be sure to tell us how you achieved your objectives, placing particular emphasis on the impact it had on teachers and learning audiences including primary, secondary and SEND schools and FE/HE providers.

Please include numbers – explain how many people benefited and what increase in engagement there has been. The judges will also be looking at how programmes are relevant to local audiences as well as supporting local and national strategies.

Tell us how your community engagement work is tailored to meet the needs and interests of specific target groups, to offer wider access to your organisation, its collections and stories.

Describe the community or communities you worked and, when explaining delivery, place particular emphasis on how you overcame barriers to engagement. Please describe the positive impact that this work has had on your community and provide evidence of outcomes – these could include new and return visits, shifting demographics, development of partnerships, etc.

Up to two awards will be made:

1. one which has used simple, affordable and easily-transferable approaches

2. one which is a project with environmental sustainability embedded at its heart

Entries should demonstrate how their project or exhibition has used, for example, energy efficiency measures, green visitor travel planning or unique approaches to engaging audiences with the climate crisis.

Entries should also identify any wider economic, social or environmental benefits to the organisation or community which have arisen from ‘thinking sustainably’.  Capital projects in particular might wish to demonstrate how they deliver against relevant UN Sustainable Development Goals

As a guide, to see what The National Lottery Heritage Fund expects of the projects it funds, explore its environmental sustainability guidance

Your application must apply to projects which were delivered during 2026.

For inspiration, take a look at these case studies of previous winners:

2026
Lambeth Palace Lambeth Palace – Harmonising Heritage and Sustainability
and
Gloucestershire Archives Green Pledge Project
Read about both projects here

2025

Railworld Wildlife Haven Entertain and Educate about our Amazing Planet we all call ’Our Home’
Stourbridge Glass Museum

⚠️IMPORTANT NOTES ⚠️

• Open only to UK based organisations
• All entries require a series of questions to be answered and you must also submit a minimum of 6 good quality, relevant photos. You will also have an opportunity to provide video footage, which is recommended, and other supporting materials as you see fit. Register/log in to the entry platform and when you start your entry you will see a copy of the criteria and questions. You can save and re-draft your entry as much as you like, right up until deadline. 
• Please ensure you have read the FAQs and T&Cs on the How To Enter page and check the eligibility criteria before proceeding with your entry.
• This category is free to enter

The focus of this award is not digitisation alone, but the creative use of digital technology to make a positive difference for users and audiences of a museum or heritage experience.

Eligible work might include digital interpretation, artificial intelligence, virtual or augmented reality, gaming, immersive experiences, digital twins, websites, apps, online engagement, commercial partnerships or digital experiences delivered on site.

Entries should explain why digital was the right response, who the intended users were and how their needs informed the project. The judges will be looking for creativity, usability and clear evidence that the digital offer has increased engagement, improved access, supported learning, generated income or reached audiences in new ways.

Please be clear about impact and evaluation. Avoid relying solely on headline reach or page-view figures: tell us what users did, what they gained and what the organisation learned.

Projects of every scale and budget are eligible. Achievement will be considered in relation to the organisation’s objectives, resources and operating context.

Please provide the overall budget and actual expenditure for the project. All financial information will be treated in confidence.

• Open to eligible digital projects worldwide, including the UK, regardless of the location of the organisation submitting the entry.
• All entries require a series of questions to be answered and you must also submit a minimum of 6 good quality, relevant photos. You will also have an opportunity to provide video footage, which is recommended, and other supporting materials as you see fit. Register/log in to the entry platform and when you start your entry you will see a copy of the criteria and questions. You can save and re-draft your entry as much as you like, right up until deadline. 
• Please ensure you have read the FAQs and T&Cs on the How To Enter page and check the eligibility criteria before proceeding with your entry.
• Please note that payment by card (Visa or MasterCard) on submission is required.

This can consist of a sustained campaign or a one-off initiative. Entries can cover events, viral marketing, fundraising campaigns, use of social media, advertising, PR, sponsorship activities etc but must demonstrate creativity and originality, a provable impact and clearly illustrate an effective return on investment.

Be sure to be clear about the impact your campaign or strategy has had in terms of visitor numbers, new audiences and/or engagement.

We’re all stronger together!

The Judges will look for partnerships that have achieved something which individual organisations could not have done on their own, and which demonstrates creativity and has had a significant impact on people, collections or place.

The project or programme should involve at least one museum, collection or heritage/cultural site or organisation, and one or more additional partners (which may be any business or organisation outside the museums and heritage sector). Particular emphasis should be given to the impact the partnership has had and its lasting legacy.

Please note that your entry must focus on the benefits and strengths of the partnership not on the detail of, for example, an exhibition or event that may have been delivered as a result of your partnership.

Entries may relate to contemporary or community collecting, acquisitions, work addressing omissions within existing collections, inventories and audits, documentation, collections reviews or rationalisation, provenance research, ethical stewardship, restitution and repatriation, cataloguing, collections storage, digitisation for collections access or the sharing of collections knowledge.

This list is not exhaustive. The judges will be looking for projects that demonstrate:

• Purpose and relevance – a clear rationale for the work and an understanding of how it strengthens the collection and its future use.
• Inclusivity and access – enabling meaningful access to collections or collections information and embedding inclusive practice.
• Accountability and stewardship – applying appropriate standards, improving data and documentation, and strengthening the long-term care and management of collections.
• Innovation and problem-solving – using imaginative approaches, appropriate technology or resourceful solutions to overcome limitations of capacity, expertise or funding.
• Legacy and knowledge-sharing – creating sustainable benefits, developing skills and sharing learning or good practice with others.

The judges will consider the purpose and impact of collecting activity rather than the financial value of objects acquired.

Where the principal achievement is the physical treatment or repair of an object, collection or building, the project should normally be entered in Best Restoration or Conservation Project. Digital work is eligible for this category where its primary purpose is to improve collections knowledge, management or access.

Projects of any size or budget will be considered, with achievement assessed in relation to available resources.

This global category recognises companies, consultancies, partnerships and creative studios whose products or services have made a real difference to clients in the cultural sector. From exhibition designers, digital specialists and interpretation experts to conservation firms, retail suppliers and strategic consultants, this award celebrates the businesses that help museums and heritage organisations innovate, engage audiences, and achieve their goals.

We’re looking for businesses that go beyond simply delivering great work – those that help elevate their clients’ ambitions, enabling innovation, and supporting the sector to thrive. Whether through creative design, smart strategy, technical excellence or outstanding service, the winner will demonstrate how their work has made a genuine difference.

Your entry should provide clear, evidence-based information.

To pitch for the title of Museums + Heritage Business of the Year, you will need to answer a series of questions and submit a simple short, one minute, video or slide deck in which you must clearly explain why your company and/or products and services are worthy of this title. Videos/slides do not have to be a big production, it could be shot on a smartphone in one take but it will be used in the next voting round.

The selected shortlistees’ pitch will be put to a sector-wide vote and the winner will be featured on Museums + Heritage Advisor and given an opportunity to speak at the Museums + Heritage Show.

Being shortlisted, let alone winning, is an incredible way to get your brilliant business in front of thousands of museum and heritage sector professionals!

• As the name suggests, this category is open to any company/consultant working in the museums and heritage sector, regardless of geographic location. This global category is not for museums and heritage/cultural organisations but for the businesses that work for and with them. 
• To enter this category, you will be required to upload a short video along with a minimum of six good quality images. Register/log in to the entry platform and when you start your entry you will be able to view the entry form. You can save and re-draft your entry as much as you like, right up until deadline. 
• Please ensure you have read the FAQs and T&Cs on the How To Enter page and check the eligibility criteria before proceeding with your entry.
• An entry fee applies to this category

IMPORTANT Please ensure you have read the FAQs and T&Cs on the How To Enter page and check the eligibility criteria before proceeding with your entry.

Please note this category is open to businesses the world-over.