A MUSEUM celebrating North-East heritage is in the running to be named a National Treasure in a competition for Lottery-funded projects.

Beamish Museum, dubbed The Living Museum of the North, has been short-listed among a dozen finalists for the award to celebrate 20 years of the National Lottery.

The award will go to the lottery-supported scheme most-loved by the public.

Votes can be registered via Facebook.com/LotteryGoodCauses where Beamish and the other contenders, described as, “a range of iconic venues, landmarks and facilities”.

Previously titled The North of England Open Air Museum, Beamish, near Stanley, County Durham, has received more than £4m of National Lottery funding, via the Arts Council England and the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Museum director Richard Evans said: “It’s a tremendous honour that our work has been recognised when so many projects have been funded by The National Lottery.

“We’re urging our supporters to vote for us.

“We would love to be crowned the nation’s best National Lottery project.”

As well as voting for England’s favourite place, the public are also being asked to vote for the celebrity who is most deserving of the title as National Treasure.

There are 12 short-listed projects and celebrities to choose from in England, with the competition expected to be fierce.

Vicki Kennedy, director of the National Lottery Good Causes, said: “This is a fun way for people to show their backing for the projects they care most about.

“It also gives us a great chance to celebrate the massive impact National Lottery players have had.

“England is packed full of National Treasures and we’re proud that National Lottery funding has been able to benefit so many of them.

“It will no doubt be tricky for people to pick just one as their favourite.”

The other competing projects in England are the Eden Project, in Cornwall, The Hepworth, in Wakefield, West Yortkshire, The Lowry, at Salford, near Manchester, Manchester SportCity, The Mary Rose Museum, in Portsmouth, The Museum of Liverpool, the National Memorial Arboretum, in Staffordshire, Leicester’s National Space Centre, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, in London, the Turner Contemporary, in Margate, Kent, and Wembley Stadium.

A winning face and place for England, along with those from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, will be announced from the full list of 68 contenders later this year.

Votes can be cast on Facebook.com/LotteryGoodCauses from 9am today (Monday May 19) until midnight on Tuesday May 27.

People taking part in the survey will have a chance to win one of five iPad Airs.