attractions & museums


Focus to work on Coventry Transport Museum project


Focus Consultants has been appointed as lead consultant on a new project to trans- form Coventry Transport Museum into an “internationally significant” attraction. Te project is in line to secure a £4.9m


grant aſter it received initial support from the Heritage Lottery Fund and will include a major overhaul of exhibition spaces. Plans also include the revitalisation of the


Grade I-listed Old Grammar School, which will be brought back into use as a public access archive and educational facility. Read more: http://lei.sr?a=U8v8r


Bannockburn centre work starts


Scottish culture secretary Fiona Hyslop has helped mark the start of work on a new multi-million pound visitor centre designed to celebrate the Battle of Bannockburn. Mansell Construction


Services has been appointed to deliver the attraction near Stirling, which was designed by a team led by Edinburgh- based Reiach and Hall. Sinclair Knight Merz;


Turner and Townsend; and KJ Tait form part of the project’s design team, while Bright White and Ian White Associates are also involved. Te Scottish Government has contributed


Te visitor complex has been designed by a team led by Reiach and Hall


£5m towards the new visitor centre, which aims to enhance the Bannockburn site and explore its significance in Scottish history. A further £4.1m has been awarded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, with the attraction set


Te hall and estate received a complete overhaul


London’s new-look Forty Hall reopens after revamp


The London Borough of Enfield has reopened the historic Forty Hall and Estate, following the completion of an extensive multi-million pound revamp. More than £4m has been invested by


the local authority in transforming the 17th century property, while £2m has been invested by the Heritage Lottery Fund. PLB, the North Yorkshire-based heritage


and design consultancy, has been respon- sible for the development of a new identity for Forty Hall and Estate. Read more: http://lei.sr?a=z3f5z


Irish attractions report increase in visitor numbers


Ireland’s leading attractions saw an increase in visitor numbers during 2011, according to new statistics from Fáilte Ireland. Dublin attractions dominate the list of


2011’s most popular sites, with the city’s Guinness Storehouse welcoming 1.025 mil- lion people – up 10 per cent on 2010. Te Guinness Storehouse has now over-


taken Dublin Zoo to become the country’s leading attraction, although the zoo still reported a 3.8 per cent growth in visitor numbers last year to 1 million. Read more: http://lei.sr?a=h6s4j


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to be completed in 2014 - the 700th anniver- sary of the Battle of Bannockburn. Temporary visitor facilities will be provided


once an existing visitor centre at the site is shut on 31 October, before being demolished. An outreach programme is also planned. Details: http://lei.sr?a=M7W1g


Survey reveals ‘devastating impact’ of cuts


New research carried out by the Museums Association (MA) has uncovered the “dev- astating impact” of funding cuts on heritage attractions throughout the UK. More than 110 museum ser-


vices and institutions took part in the association’s sur- vey, with 51 per cent reporting a reduction to their budgets compared with April 2011. Nearly a quarter have been


forced to reduce public access by shutting whole or part of sites either temporarily or permanently, while 11 per cent have permanently closed whole sites. Other findings from the survey showed that


42 per cent of participants had reduced staff- ing levels, with nearly a third seeing budgets reduced by more than a tenth.


More than 110 services and institutions participated in the MA’s survey However, 36 per cent of those who responded


to the survey expect to increase the quality of service over the next year – compared with 13 per cent at the same stage last year. Details: http://lei.sr?a=b9c9g


£1.5m refurbishment of Norwich museum complete


Norfolk Museums and Archaeology Service (NMAS) has announced the reopening of Te Bridewell Museum in Norwich, following the completion of a £1.5m overhaul. Work included a new entrance and lift, as well as the installation of new displays


Read Leisure Opportunities online: www.leisureopportunities.co.uk/digital


examining the history of the East Anglian city and residents through its trade and industry. New galleries include Living in Norwich,


which explores life between 1900 and the pres- ent day, and the Timeline Gallery. Details: http://lei.sr?a=E3Z5g


Twitter: @leisureopps © CYBERTREK 2012


image: pio3/shutterstock.com


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