Kensington Palace has been the stage for some of the great events in history and it is filled with fascinating stories that can inspire and help people to understand how Britain developed the society we have today. Our challenge is to tell these stories to the widest possible audience.

To do this, Historic Royal Palaces must overcome long-standing barriers to access and provide new displays and spaces for people to learn from Kensington's stories.

For a long time, the palace has been separated from its surrounding park and the tall railings that surrounded it made Kensington appear closed and even forbidding. Access is difficult for disabled people and there are only limited places for children to learn on school visits. The palace's vibrant and diverse local communities can feel excluded from the palace and may be unsure about what it has to offer them.

Historic Royal Palaces has devised a bold and ambitious plan to transform Kensington Palace for the 21st century by summer 2012. Our project, Welcome to Kensington - a palace for everyone will change Kensington Palace by creating a new landscape for the palace and engaging displays that tell more of the palace's stories. There will be new spaces for school groups and other learners and we will expand our work in the local community so that everyone feels welcome at Kensington Palace.

We can't achieve these exciting changes to Kensington Palace alone. It will cost £12 million to transform the palace. Some of this we will fund from our own resources, but Historic Royal Palaces must raise at least £6 million in donations and sponsorship.