The government’s Department of Culture Media & Sport (DCMS) has announced that Bexhill Museum will be one of a select group of 26 museums across England chosen for major capital investment this year.
More than £390,000 in new investment will allow the Museum team to carry out urgent structural & flood proofing works on the lower ground floor and re-tile and insulate the Sargent Gallery roof. We will also be able to leak-proof the walls, replace external doors and repaint the building front and back.
Museum chair of trustees Sally Hemmings has welcomed the news. “This investment will set the building up for decades to come, enabling new and exciting activities, greater accessibility for all, and open up the extra space we need to study, share and expand our collection”.
The government grant, announced on March 25, only covers the cost of extensive works on the building fabric itself. The fixtures & fittings will have to be funded elsewhere, as the park-facing lower ground floor is made safe and suitable for collection care and volunteer use over the next two years.
Accessibility works will allow Bexhill Museum to open up a second education room and install more space efficient mobile shelving with additional funding made available from local developers’ levies by East Sussex County Council.
Administered by the Arts Council, the DCMS’ £86 million Museum Estate & Development Fund (MEND) helps museums deliver a better experience for visitors and staff, improve access, reduce carbon footprints and to protect treasured collections for future generations.
Battle & Bexhill MP Huw Merriman said the investment was well earned: “The Museum’s visitor numbers are at their best in decades and its volunteers have done a sensational job expanding educational services and serving local groups working for better health & wellbeing.”
East Sussex County Councillor for Bexhill South Ian Hollidge also welcomed the news. “The county council is delighted to support Bexhill Museum and this project, by facilitating additional funding for fixtures & fittings not covered by the government’s grant.”
Arts Council England CEO Darren Henley said museums make a huge contribution to the lives of people. “This investment in the physical fabric of their buildings helps to make sure that our museums are able to carry on serving their communities for years to come.”
Alongside Bexhill Museum, other museums to win support from the MEND fund in this round include Chatham Royal Dockyard, Uppark House in West Sussex, Powell-Cotton Museum in Kent, and the Discovery Museum in Newcastle.
The DCMS/Arts Council investment in Bexhill Museum was announced on the same day the government released news of a separate and additional £20 million worth of Levelling Up Partnership funding for other “place-based” regeneration projects in Bexhill and Rother. The two government funds are not connected.