Novium and tourist centre to welcome visitors back

Chichester’s Novium Museum and Tourist Information Centre will reopen to visitors from July 28 in line with Government guidelines.

The award-winning museum, which has been closed since March, will be opening its doors again with the revised opening hours of Tuesday to Saturday, 11am-4pm. A number of social distancing and safety measures have been introduced to keep visitors and staff safe. These include: · Free, pre-booked visitor slots to manage numbers in the museum galleries; · One-way circulation through the museum, with clear floor signage;

· The availability of hand sanitiser at the entrance and throughout the museum; · Regular deep cleaning of the building.

The current headline exhibition, Mystery Warrior:

The North Bersted Man, which was due to end on September 26 2020, has been extended until April 17, 2021.

Arguably the most elaborately equipped warrior grave ever found in England, archaeologists believe the Mystery Warrior was a refugee French Gallic fighter who fled Julius Caesar’s Roman army as it swept across continental Europe around 50BC.

Councillor Roy Briscoe, cabinet member for community services and culture at Chichester District Council, said: “The team have been working really hard to ensure our visitor experience is a safe and enjoyable one. “Cultural venues play a vital part in a thriving city and can be tremendously beneficial to our wellbeing.”

While the guidelines mean that the museum’s galleries cannot be as interactive as usual for the time being, activity sheets have been created for children and activity backpacks will also be available to hire.

Online booking to visit The Novium Museum is open now via the museum’s website: www.thenovium. org/reopening. Admission is free of charge, with donations gratefully accepted. A limited allocation of tickets will be available on the door to allow for Chichester Tourist Information Centre dropin enquiries. The Tourist Information Centre will operate a slightly amended service, and visitors are advised that box office and National Express bookings can only be made online: www.thenovium.org/chitic or by phone: 01243 775888.

Formoreinformationabout the museum’s reopening and to book, visit www. thenovium.org/reopening or email thenovium@ chichester.gov.uk