The magnificent entrance to Larnach Castle. Image: Larnach Castle Ltdexpand/collapse
National Heritage Preservation Incentive Fund
The Government's 2003 Budget announced the creation of a national heritage preservation incentive fund. Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga administers this Fund.
The purpose of the fund is to provide financial incentives to encourage the conservation of privately owned heritage places recognised on the New Zealand Heritage List, as opposed to those in the ownership of the public sector and agencies eligible for funding from the Lottery Grants Board. Priority is given to heritage places of national significance where conservation work is planned and could be improved through extra funding.
The annual appropriation approved by Parliament for this fund is $563,000 (GST inclusive).
Heritage EQUIP
Heritage EQUIP supports private owners of earthquake-prone heritage buildings to seismically strengthen their buildings. The programme includes a “how-to” website along with grant funding.
Grants can cover up to 67% of the seismic strengthening costs of works that raise the earthquake resistant capacity of the building to above 34% NBS. Professional Advice Grants and other incentives are available for eligible owners of heritage buildings in regional centres that are medium or high seismic risk areas.
How to apply
Full details including eligibility criteria and how to apply are available at www.heritageequip.govt.nz. You can apply at any time, and the expert advisory panel meets three times a year to assess applications. Applications for the next funding round close on 29 March 2021.
Lottery Grants Board
Community organisations can apply to the Lottery Environment and Heritage Committee for funding grants for projects which 'promote, protect and conserve New Zealand's natural, physical and cultural heritage'. Such projects can include historical publications, museums, whare taonga and art galleries as well as the conservation of historic buildings, structures, rolling stock, archaeological sites and wahi tapu sites.
The Committee meets twice a year in June and November to consider applications, which must be received three months prior to a meeting. Heritage New Zealand staff are available to assist applicants with advice and/or professional endorsement for suitable projects. Contact your local Heritage New Zealand office for more details.
Oranga Marae
Oranga Marae is a programme of support, advice and investment for marae. It gives whanau and hapū advice and support to help develop their marae and achieve their goals. This support may include building projects and activities to revitalise cultural knowledge.
A goal of the programme is to strengthen the ability of marae to pass on their ancestral knowledge of whaikōrero, karanga and local mātauranga, tikanga and kawa to descendants.
Oranga Marae can provide funding for
- marae development planning
- technical or feasibility study support
- cultural revitalisation activities
- capital works.
Oranga Marae is provided by Te Puni Kōkiri and the Department of Internal Affairs. It replaces the Lottery Marae Heritage and Facilities Fund which is permanently closed.
To find out more about eligibility criteria and the application process, please visit Te Puni Kōkiri's website.
Canterbury Earthquake Heritage Buildings Trust
A special appeal was launched to help fund the repair, restoration and strengthening of character and heritage buildings damaged during the Christchurch earthquake. All donations to the Canterbury Earthquake Heritage Buildings Fund were matched dollar-for-dollar by the government up to $10 million.
The Canterbury Earthquake Heritage Buildings Trust is managed by Heritage New Zealand.
Funding is targeted to bridge the gap between insurance cover, and the actual cost of repairs and associated works including conservation works, structural upgrading and Building Code compliance works. The Trustees will give preference to buildings where the preservation of which will make a significant contribution to the historic identity and visual character of a place and will, in turn, confer maximum public benefit.
Owners of earthquake-damaged heritage buildings located within the Canterbury region are eligible to apply to this Trust for assistance with repairs for the purposes of retention and restoration.
Further funds became available and a contestable round of applications for funding has closed. There is more information about the types of projects the Fund will support in the Fund Policy document (pdf, 357kb) - please read this before you consider applying. All owners of qualifying heritage buildings are eligible to apply to the general fund for assistance. To apply, please complete the application form (Word, 112kb) and send it to
Conservation Architect
Heritage New Zealand
PO Box 4403
Christchurch Mail Centre 8140
Phone + 64 3 363 1889.
Territorial authority grants
Heritage grants are the most common non-regulatory incentive offered in New Zealand, and most of these are discretionary grants which have flexible guidelines, and a competitive selection process. Usually, an assessment committee determines which projects will be funded.
Heritage grants are provided by a large number of territorial authorities. Most funds are relatively small and individual grant amounts are often between $5,000 to $10,000. Some of the largest funds are the Auckland Council Built Heritage Protection Fund, Wellington City Council’s Built Heritage Incentive Fund and the Canterbury Earthquake Heritage Buildings Fund.
The Christchurch City Council’s Heritage Incentive Grants Fund provides financial assistance to owners of heritage items listed in the City Plan and Banks Peninsula District Plan.
Owners can also apply to the Canterbury Earthquake Heritage Buildings Fund Trust to assist in funding insurance shortfalls for earthquake-related repairs to listed and non-listed heritage and character buildings damaged in the Canterbury Earthquakes.
Some local authorities also provide performance grants for specific types of work. Check your local authority's website for information about what they offer and their terms and conditions.
Unreinforced masonry buildings
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment has targeted funding support where owners who are required (under section 124 of the Building Act 2005) to secure facades and/or parapets of street-facing unreinforced masonry buildings can apply for a contribution to the costs. Find out more on the website.
Incentives for Historic Heritage
Heritage New Zealand has prepared a toolkit that provides an overview of the range of regulatory and non-regulatory incentives including methods such as conservation lots, waivers of zone provisions, transferable development rights, grants and rates relief. The toolkit (pdf, 3mb) outlines some of the benefits and costs of these incentives and examples of their use in New Zealand.
