One of the cornerstones of The Town Mill’s application to The National Lottery Heritage Fund in 2024 was the Trust Board’s desire to realise their vision to broaden the range of visitors who could benefit from this special heritage site and - having been saved by the community 25 years ago - embed even more deeply the mill as a true community asset.
The first significant step to increase this community engagement started with the removal of any financial barriers to people entering the mill. We achieved this by taking the bold decision to remove all entry fees to visit the Town Mill, and access to the heritage site has now been completely free for over a year. This has transformed the number of people engaging with the mill, its ancient stories and its long history serving the community of Lyme Regis.
The next step was to actively expand the site's use by community, hard-to-reach and disadvantaged groups who could learn & enjoy from all this special site has to offer, specifically through the creation of a new, employed role – a Community Engagement & Events Co-ordinator.
Our successful application to The National Lottery Heritage Fund included funding for this position for a 3-year period and in February 2025, we were delighted to welcome John Britton to the team to fulfil the community engagement brief.
A seasoned Project Manager with 15 years of experience, John brings with him a unique blend of community focus and commercial acumen. His extensive background includes not only commercial and public sector experience, but also successful engagement with youth and community groups developed from significant time with The National Citizen Service Trust whose mission is to inspire generations of young people through shared experiences that develop character and bridge social divides.
Using money raised by National Lottery players, The National Lottery Heritage Fund supports projects that connect people and communities with the UK's Heritage – and our ability to appoint John to a dedicated community engagement role is a core thread in re-vitalising that important connection between heritage and community here at this historic mill.
As well as expressing our appreciation to all our funders, thanks to National Lottery players, we have been able to move forward with this vitally important project within the Trust’s overall vision to secure the future of the mill and embed its legacy as a vibrant community asset in the very heart of Lyme Regis.
We are delighted to welcome John to the team whose hard work is already underway; join us in celebrating our community and watch our stories unfold here over coming week.
