The community heritage networking event of the year is coming to Medway in 2027.

Join hundreds of community heritage leaders in Medway for three days ofnetworking, discussion, learning, exploration.

There is nothing quite like the Heritage Network Conference. In recent years it has grown into the most lively, informative and fun event in the heritage sector calendar. The emphasis is on the impact of community-led heritage on people and places, explored through the experience of heritage regeneration in our host towns and cities and beyond.

We explore the vital topics of funding and business planning, community engagement, access and inclusion, governance and succession, regeneration and place-making and so much more.

These are serious topics, but we don’t take ourselves too seriously. This is the friendly conference, and we go out of our way to make everyone feel welcome, safe and included. We have a perfect mix of delegates; community heritage leaders, major heritage agencies and funders, local authorities, heritage businesses and early-career professionals, meaning you can Network and make the connections you need whatever your role.

As well as a day of compelling presentations, lively discussions and networking, Conference includes tours and visits to fascinating historic sites and ground-breaking projects. We seek out stunning locations for our main Conference day, dinner, drinks reception and farewell lunch.

"Medway is fantastic location for our 2027 conference, it's a place with lots happening across heritage and culture. The well-known heritage in the area includes the maritime history of the area, the links to literature and Dickens, the historic castle and cathedral; but the community heritage is what we'rekeen to see. Withan active heritage development trust, lots of community activity, and plenty to discover, we're really looking forward to bringing the Heritage Network conference here in 2027." Izabella Maar, Conference Organiser

Key contact

Izabella Maar

Conference Organiser

Email:

izabella@heritagenetwork.org.uk

A photograph of an auditorium full of people. They are all smiling at the camera and have a hand raised with the fingers crossed to symbolise thank you to the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Conference Programme

Find out what usually happens at a Heritage Network Conference.

2027's programme is still being finalised, but you can get a feel for how the event runs:

Conference is spread over 3 days, which each day full of different activities.

Sunday 3rd October

The Conference begins with tours & visits to key historic sites in the host city, where delegates can experience an exclusive behind the scenes look at important regeneration projects happening in the area.

Past examples of tours have included:

Belfast & Armagh 2026: Assembly Buildings, Belfast City Hall, Crescent Arts Centre and Historic Waterfront

Bradford 2025: Little Germany, Science and Media Museum, Bradford Live and Saltaire Word Heritage Site

The first social event of the conference. It’s a chance to informally network with other industry professionals (with some delicious canapes!) in a stunning historical location.

Past Welcome Reception locations:

Belfast & Armagh 2026: 2 Royal Avenue, Belfast

Bradford 2025: Victoria Hall, Saltaire

Monday 4th October

The main conference day begins with a series of talks on key themes and topics in heritage-led regeneration. It also includes a talk from the headline sponsor for conference and a dedicated networking session which always encourages lively conversation!

Past talks in the plenary session have included:

Belfast & Armagh 2026:

Preserving the Heritage of Places of Worship by National Churches Trust
50 years of lessons in community heritage by Architectural Heritage Fund

Bradford 2025:

Little Germany, Bradford: A community led approach to place making by Impact Hub Yorkshire CIC
Living Legacy; Shaping Bradford’s public realm through heritage-led regeneration by Historic England, National Lottery Heritage Fund and Buttress Architects.

Delegates can attend up to 3 breakout sessions throughout the day. Sessions focus on different topics and have more of an interactive element to them than the plenary session.

Breakout sessions in the past have included:

Belfast & Armagh, 2026:

Community-led heritage in practice: Learning from the spaces, places and belonging hub by The National Archives
Significance, Heritage Impact & More: managing change at your historic site by Simpson & Brown
From Vacant to Vibrant: Models for Trusts to Retrofit Historic Buildings in Affordable Housing by Glasgow Buildings Preservation Trust and Tyne + Wear Building Preservation Trust

Bradford, 2025:

Shouting about the sector: Creating a youth-led heritage podcast by Heritage Network Youth Forum
Saltaire Retrofit Reimagined – Are heritage, climate and the needs of residents really in conflict? By Above Ground
Heritage Works for Creative Industries by Harlow Consulting, Purcell and Historic England

The conference exhibition typically runs all day and delegates can meet suppliers from across the heritage network. We have a variety of different suppliers at the conference, including heritage consultants, banks, digital services and funders.

If you are interested in exhibiting at Conference 2027, please email brigid@heritagenetwork.org.uk

A chance to reflect on what’s happened during the day.

A highly anticipated event amongst delegates, the Conference dinner is always in a historic location and always great fun.

In previous years, the dinner has been held in:

Belfast & Armagh, 2026: Belfast City Hall

Bradford, 2025: Bradford Live

Tuesday 5th October

The final day begins with tours and visits, where delegates can experience an exclusive behind the scenes look at important regeneration projects happening in the area.

The final event of the Heritage Network Conference, a chance for final networking, delicious food and to find out where the 2028 Conference will be held....

Previously the Farewell lunch has been held at:

Belfast & Armagh, 2026: Armagh City Hotel

Bradford, 2025: Darley Sreet Kitchen

A photograph of a group of people networking at an event. Some are smiling at each other and others are deep in conversation.

A group of people watching a powerpoint presentation at the Heritage Network 2025 conference

A man points something out to a large group of people on a walking tour in a town.

Get your tickets

Super early bird tickets are now on sale, meaning you can save £75 per ticket by buying super early.

Network, Network Plus, Associate Partner, Partner and Supporter members get special member rate tickets. You should have received a promo code for these; please email admin@heritagenetwork.org.uk (mailto:admin@heritagenetwork.org.uk) if you have not.

Super early bird tickets are only available for a limited time.

Book your tickets for conference (external link)

What is a Heritage Network conference like?

Thank you so much for organising such a wonderful conference... It was a great itinerary with fabulous venues for us to visit and interesting and relevant talks to listen to. Not to mention the excellent food! As a newbie, it could have been a slightly intimidating event to attend but your team was incredibly welcoming and friendly; thank you so much for making introductions and ensuring that everything ran so smoothly.

First Time Conference Delegate Heritage Network Conference 2025

What an amazing conference experience you all created - it was incredibly useful to me, at a pivotal and at times overwhelming stage in the project, to hear from such a range of projects, experts and experience. Thanks so much for ... putting on such a brilliant event.

Conference delegateHeritage Network Conference 2025

Hands on can say it was one of the best conferences I have been to anywhere!

Conference Delegate Heritage Network Conference 2025

As someone who had spent much of my career working in music, theatre and the creative industries, I arrived thinking I was attending a heritage conference. I left realising that I was actually among kindred spirits. I learned that heritage adds value to creative businesses, that creative activity makes places more attractive to residents and visitors, and that historic buildings often provide the perfect setting for regeneration and renewal.

Conference 2025 delegateHeritage Network Conference 2025

Inclusive and safe

We aim for all of our events to be inclusive, safe spaces where everyone’s views and experiences are respected.

Accessibility

We aim to make conference as accessible as possible for all attending. More details about accessibility for the different venues and events will be posted nearer the time. In the meantime, if you have any questions about accessibility, feel free to reach out to us via our Contact Us page.

A group of smiling people sit in a group.

Useful Information

It's easy to travel to Northern Ireland from England, Scotland or Wales

Find out how on Visit Belfast’s ‘Getting Here’ page (external link).

Green travel

We'll be handing out prizes to any delegate that travel over land and sea by public transport. It's easy and you can get lots of work done on the way. Check out Man at Seat 61's Northern Ireland page (external link)for tips and information.

Flying

You can fly to from nearly all GB regional airports to either Belfast International or Belfast City Airports. We will be looking into providing coaches to get you back from Armagh to your chosen airport on Tuesday afternoon.

Visit Belfast's 'Getting Here' page (external link).