Seven projects delivering traditional skills training - including stone masonry, blacksmithing and thatching - are set to receive an additional £2.85m from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF).

The extra funding will enable the schemes, which currently operate under the HLF's existing £7m Training Bursary Programme, to immediately create more than 220 further training places for people looking for a career in heritage. Among the projects to benefit is the Institute of Archaeologists (£355,000) to create 20 new archaeology placements across the UK and the Traditional Building Skills for England and Wales scheme (£500,000) run by the National Trust and English Heritage, which will provide 56 placements.

The Institute of Conservation (ICON) has been awarded £490,000 to provide skills for the conservation of objects and collections; the Historic and Botanic Gardens scheme will receive £338,000 and the Natural Talent Project will net £389,000. HLF funding will also go towards the Masonry Conservation in Scotland and Northern Ireland Project (£436,800) and the LEMUR Scheme - run by Herefordshire Nature Trust - has received £331,600.

HLF chair Dame Jenny Abramsky said: "We've allocated this extra money because we wanted to make a real impact now, when it is needed most. More than ever in difficult times, HLF wants to offer people skills that will give them a future career while also meeting the needs of the sector." The funding, which will provide range of placements to offer accredited work-based training with skilled professionals and environmental specialists, will be followed by a new £5m HLF initiative - Skills for the Future - due to launch in December 2009.

Skills for the Future will provide heritage workers with a wider range of skills, such as working with digital technologies or to help attract new audiences to heritage.