Urgent repairs needed to save home of city’s masterpieces
AT LEAST £2M REQUIRED TO FIX MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY
THE home of Derby Museum and Art Gallery is deteriorating so much that it could cost at least £2 million for the building to be fully repaired. Leaders at Derby City Council, which owns the city centre Grade II-listed museum, have approved the authority to make a bid for Government funding of around £750,000 so that work to protect the building could potentially start next year.
The Museum and Art Gallery, established in 1879, is home to the world’s largest collection of works by celebrated artist Joseph Wright, who was born in Derby. A council report says repairing and protecting the future of Derby Museum and Art Gallery is an “essential” project which will help extend the building’s life and protect the museum’s collections from damage.
THE home of Derby Museum and Art Gallery is deteriorating so much that it could cost at least £2 million for the building to be fully repaired.
Council leaders at Derby City Council, which owns the city centre Grade II-listed museum, have approved the authority to make a bid for Government funding of around £750,000 so that work to protect the building could potentially start next year.
A council report says repairing and protecting the future of Derby Museum and Art Gallery is an “essential” project which will help extend the building’s life and protect the museum’s collections from damage.
The report states that there are currently “substantial challenges to the fabric of Derby Museum and Art Gallery” and the city council has instructed external conservation specialists to undertake a detailed survey of the building.
Problems with the building on The Strand include fabric deterioration, water ingress and continually leaking roofs.
The report, which can be read in full on the council’s website, says: “The urgent items to address the fabric deterioration and water ingress in the next one to two years include replacement flat roof covering, pointing to brickwork and repairs to consequential damage caused by continually leaking roofs.
“This will extend the life of the building and help to protect the Council’s art and museum collection from damage. “The high-level budget costings for the work are in the region of £2 million to £2.5 million. These are not final costs and are pre RIBA stages for the purpose of the condition survey to inform the likely costs of repairs.”
The Museum and Art Gallery, established in 1879, is home to the world’s largest collection of works by celebrated Derby artist Joseph Wright.
The city council is to bid for funding from the Museum Estate Development (MEND) which is administered by Arts Council England. Money from the funding pot is to help non-nationally accredited museums across England complete urgent maintenance and improve their core infrastructure. However, the city council say it would need to commit further funding of between £1.25 million or £1.75 million – if its bid was successful. This could place a further pressure on the council’s 2021/22 finances which were said at a meeting last week to be of a “worrying” state by one of the council’s finance bosses.
In the event the council’s bid for funding is approved, the project must commence on site no later than April 25, 2022, and the deadline to complete all activities is March 25, 2025.
A Derby City Council spokesperson said: “Derby Museum and Art Gallery is a key part of the city’s cultural offer and a landmark Grade II-listed building.
“Supporting our colleagues at the Museums Trust to apply for the MEND fund will help us to safeguard the future of the Museum and Art Gallery and the nationally significant collections it houses.”
The management team of Derby Museum and Art Gallery, Derby Museums, say news of the council’s funding bid is a “positive step forward”.
Tony Butler, executive director of Derby Museums, said: “We have been working with Derby City Council very closely to bring some external funding into the city.
“It will be great if we are able to secure some of this funding and get on with some of the work that is required on the building.
“It’s a really positive step forward that we could obtain this funding – it is a really competitive process. It will help secure the collections in the future.”
Derby Museum and Art Gallery is a key part of the city’s cultural offer and a landmark Grade II-listed building. City council