Cash boost as council seeks to ring the changes at Carillon
A PROJECT to improve the visitor experience at Loughborough’s iconic Carillon Tower is preparing to enter the next phase.
The project, which involves Charnwood Borough Council, Loughborough War Memorial Museum Trust and Charnwood Arts, was awarded £13,500 from Arts Council England due to a successful bid for grant funding earlier this year.
Part of the funding has now been used to appoint Vertigo Creative, a Leicesterbased design company to help develop costed design ideas for a revamp of the museum rooms in the Tower.
These designs will then be used to develop a further funding application to help bring them to fruition.
As part of this process, the project have launched a consultation aimed at all the target audiences of the Carillon Tower, including schools, community groups, young people and local families. The consultation will give a clear view of what kind of themes, objects and stories visitors would like to see explored in the new displays.
The consultation is available online at https://bit.ly/ CarillonConsultation. The deadline for submissions is Friday, December 31. All responses are anonymous, and will be used solely for the purposes of the project.
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: “We are entering an exciting new phase in this project, and I can’t wait to see what designs Vertigo Creative come up with. It will also be fascinating to hear from residents of Charnwood and fans of the museum to find out what stories they would like to see told.
“The Carillon Tower is a mustvisit attraction in the town and this project will ensure that it continues to be an amazing cultural experience for visitors for years to come.”
Mel Gould, of the Loughborough Carillon Tower and War Memorial Museum Trust, said: “It is great to see this project picking up pace, and everyone involved is eager to see the designs from Vertigo Creative.
“I hope that many Charnwood residents take part in the consultation as their ideas and expectations are important to us.
“The Carillon will be 100 years old in 2023, so what better way can we celebrate that anniversary than taking our visitors on a tour of the new-look museum.”
To discover more about the Loughborough Carillon Tower and War Memorial Museum, visit www.carillontower.org.uk.
It will be fascinating to hear from residents to find out what stories they would like to see told.
County councillor Jenny Bokor