Cash boost to help visitor experience at town’s tower
A project to improve the visitor experience at Loughborough’s iconic Carillon Tower has received a boost thanks to Arts Council England.
A grant of £13,500 has been awarded to the project which involves Charnwood Borough Council, Loughborough War Memorial Museum Trust and Charnwood Arts.
Part of the funding will be used to appoint a designer to create plans for the inside of the Carillon Tower to be re-imagined for future visitors so that it can deliver the best opportunities for learning and engagement for visitors and be accessible to all.
There will also be a consultation aimed at all the target audiences of the Carillon Tower, including schools, community groups, young people and local families to discover how to better reflect the diversity of people who live and work in Charnwood.
The outcomes of the plans and consultation will then feed into another, larger funding application to bring the plans to fruition. The overall aim is to improve the museum within Loughborough’s iconic Carillon Tower and find creative ways bring the tower’s heritage to a wider audience.
The tower and the museum is currently closed to visitors while funding is secured to make improvements inside.
Councillor Jenny Bokor, lead member for Loughborough, said: “Congratulations to the Loughborough War Museum Trust, Charnwood Arts and Charnwood Borough Council on their successful bid for funding, and to Arts Council England for accepting the bid.
“The tower is an integral part of the culture of the town and this funding will go a long way to improving people’s experience when they visit the tower.”
Mel Gould, of the Loughborough Carillon Tower and War Memorial Museum Trust, said: “We are delighted to secure this grant which will help us develop the visitor experience at the tower. The tower is the town’s war memorial and it is important that people can come here and learn and understand what the Carillon stands for, why it’s here and the sacrifices people have made for this country.”
Shirley Novak, CEO of Charnwood Arts, said: “We as a team are delighted to be part of this truly amazing project which brings home once again the importance of ‘community’.
“Congratulations to Loughborough War Museum Trust, Charnwood Arts and Charnwood Borough Council and we can’t wait to start the process of raising the awareness of this wonderful resource on our home ground.”
In 2018, a £280,000 conservation project was carried out on the tower by the borough council, supported by War Memorials Trust. To discover more about the tower and War Memorial Museum, visit www.carillontower.
The tower is an integral part of the culture of the town and this funding will go a long way to improving people’s experience when they visit the tower