Two heritage attractions in Staffordshire, the Brampton Museum in Newcastle-under-Lyme and the former Spode factory in Stoke-on-Trent are set to benefit from fresh funding and development.
The Brampton Museum has successfully bid for a £99,000 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, and Stoke-on-Trent City Council in partnership with Dog and Bone Group and the Spode Museum have unveiled plans to renovate the courtyard area of the Spode site.
Brampton Museum heritage funding is fantastic news
The money will be used to improve access to collections, establish a new supporters’ group, increase the amount of work the museum does with local communities and to extend its popular programme of talks and film shows.
Chris Skelding, Cabinet member for leisure, culture and heritage at Newcastle Borough Council described the “generous grant” from the National Lottery as “fantastic news”.
He added: “The Brampton Museum – which is home to more than 2,000 years of borough history – holds a special place in residents’ hearts and thanks to National Lottery players, we can further enhance its fantastic offer.”
Located in parkland just outside the centre of the town the Brampton Museum is home to a collection of over 28,000 artifacts relating to the history of the ancient borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme. The museum is also home to an art gallery currently hosting the ‘Inspired by Nature’ exhibition featuring the work of Louise Adams, Mark Delf, Andrea Durrant and Jane James.
Lottery funding will also support improvements to Brampton Park and the restoration of 11 long-case clocks made in the town between 1680 and 1870.
Spode Museum renovation could improve Stoke’s fortunes
Spode manufactured pottery at its factory on Church Street in Stoke town centre from 1776 until it closed in 2008. The distinctive chimney with the company name written on it is still a local landmark.
The site has been redeveloped to house a hotel, artists studios, the Spode Museum Trust, and the British Ceramics Biennial. Part of the former factory has also been transformed into the Spode Hall and is regularly used to host exhibitions and trade fairs.
The renovation plan provides funding to improve existing green spaces and preserve the foundations of former coal-fired bottle kilns demolished in the 1960s. Councillor Finlay Gordon-McCusker, cabinet member for transport, infrastructure and regeneration at Stoke-on-Trent City Council said the Spode site was a “fantastic place in the middle of Stoke town”. The renovations would, he said: “create a pleasant environment for workers on the site and visitors to sit and enjoy,” adding that the council’s ambition for the future of the Spode site was to “combine the old with the new to create a central hub for creativity and the arts”.
Although, like the other six towns making up the city, Stoke faces challenges including reviving its dying high street, the investment at Spode along with the soon to open Goods Yard development suggest its fortunes may be improving.
