English Heritage's project to conserve the graffiti within Richmond Castle's cell block has been shortlisted for the 2018 National Lottery Awards.

The Richmond Castle Cell Block Project is conserving delicate drawings, etchings and inscriptions made by prisoners at the castle from the First World War onwards. This includes graffiti left by a group of conscientious objectors who were imprisoned at the castle during the First World War.

The winner of the awards will be decided by public vote but the charity needs your help to get the message out there. The project is nominated in the Best Heritage Project category.

These awards seek to find the UK's favourite Lottery-funded projects with the winner receiving £5,000. The prize would help continue the work English Heritage is doing at Richmond Castle.

Voting will be open until midnight on 27 July.

Make your vote count

About the Richmond Graffiti project

The project is a £550,000 investment to investigate, identify and resolve the risks facing North Yorkshire's Richmond Castle and its graffiti.

The graffiti is extremely fragile and water damage has been a long-term threat. This project has conserved the building and gradually uncovered a poignant history written on the cell's delicate lime-washed walls.

The project has developed educational resources for local schools and created a forum for discussion around historical themes linked to the building.

With the help of the Heritage Lottery Fund, English Heritage, along with a number of volunteers, continue to uncover the graffiti and explore its origins.

Kevin Booth, Senior Curator at English Heritage, said:

'Just to be shortlisted is a tribute to the important work done by everyone - including our incredible team of local volunteers - to save the graffiti at Richmond Castle.

'We now need everyone's help to win the award and give this project and the stories behind it a national platform. So please vote for Richmond Castle!'

How to vote

There are three ways to vote for Richmond Castle:

• Online at www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/project/richmond-cells-voices-rebellion
• Via Twitter - tweet your support for Richmond Castle using its unique hashtag #NLARichmondCastle (one tweet per account)
• Call the dedicated telephone voting line for Richmond Castle on 0844 836 9702 - calls cost 5p maximum plus network operator access charges

Access to the cell block is currently closed to the public, but if the surfaces on which the graffiti is written can be stabilised, the public will be able to visit for the first time.

Visit Richmond Castle in North Yorkshire.

Enjoy a 360° tour of the cell block on our YouTube channel.

For more from English Heritage, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.