Avoncroft Museum

Avoncroft Museum awarded additional £92,000 from Government

Avoncroft Museum in Bromsgrove has been awarded £92,000 in the second round of the Government and Arts Council England’s Culture Recovery Fund. This welcome investment will allow the museum to pay for some urgent repairs and open its doors once again to the public in the early summer.

The museum usually relies on public admissions and donations to cover conservation and staff costs, along with profits from the tearoom and shop. It also earns income as a unique venue for weddings and functions. All of these sources of income have of course been severely impacted by the Covid-19 restrictions, and the museum has had to rely on recovery grants to keep its head above water.

Michael Woolley, Chair of Trustees at Avoncroft Museum, said; “After a very difficult twelve months because of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is very exciting news that the Museum has been awarded a further grant of £92, 000 from the Culture Recovery Fund. This will make a major contribution towards being able to re-open the Museum safely and undertake some of the repairs to the buildings necessitated by the Museum being closed for such a long time. The future is looking much brighter today as a result of this grant.”

Zoe Willems, Director at Avoncroft Museum, said; “I’m delighted that we’ve been successful in this bid for recovery funding. It’s a real boost for the museum, a vote of confidence in our future. With it we can press ahead with our plans for reopening and we’re all looking forward to sharing the stories of our Midlands heritage with visitors once again and playing an active and vibrant part in our local community.”

Avoncroft Museum grounds will be open across the Bank Holiday weekend of the 1st to 3rd of May, and every weekend in May from 10am to 5pm. Despite the buildings remaining closed the 19 acres of orchard, fields, meadows, picnic areas and playgrounds will provide a large amount of outdoor space for visitors to explore.

On top of this the museum is also reopening its tea rooms with a takeaway offer on food, drinks and firm favourites for the Spring such as ice-cream.

In order to ensure visitors to Avoncroft remain safe and have an enjoyable day numbers on the site will be limited and tickets for half-hour arrival times will need to be purchased in advance on the website as they won’t be available on the day. For more information about Avoncroft Museum please visit www.avoncroft.org.uk or email collections@avoncroft.org.uk