Activity Plan Consultant for the Leading Lights Project

National Historic Ships UK (NHS-UK) is seeking an experienced consultant or consultancy organisation to develop a comprehensive Activity Plan for the Leading Lights Project, a five-year capacity building scheme funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The project aims to strengthen the historic vessels sector across the UK by providing support to vessel custodians, sector professionals, training organisations, and funding bodies. The successful consultant will prepare a full Activity Plan to Heritage Fund guidelines, including an executive summary, consultation and audience analysis, risk assessment, project management structure, job descriptions, recruitment strategy, working timetable, detailed activity programme, budget and cash flow projections. The deliverable is required by the end of June 2027 to support a Delivery Phase application to the Heritage Fund in November 2027. Applicants should have a proven track record of delivering successful Heritage Fund Activity Plans, experience with detailed budget development, strong collaborative and report writing skills, and demonstrated interest in the historic ships sector. The fee is up to £25,000 (excluding VAT) including expenses. Submissions must include a CV and written proposal (maximum 6 pages) with methodology, timeline, Gantt chart, fee breakdown, and two relevant referees. Contract start date is January 2027. Deadline for submissions is 23 November 2026.