Paisley’s museum vision wins lottery funding of £4.9m

A £42 million bid to transform Scotland’s first municipal museum into a new “worldclass” visitor attraction is set to go ahead after the Paisley project received crucial Heritage Lottery Fund backing.

Renfrewshire Council has secured a £4.9m pledge for a scheme to create modern extension to the existing Victoria-era museum which will also be completely overhauled over the next few years.

The project, which is expected to raise the profile of Paisley pattern design and the town’s textiles heritage is aimed at attracting nearly four times as many visitors in future.

The backing of the HLF is a major boost to Paisley hopes of claiming the UK City of Culture crown for 2021, although the new-look museum will not be ready till the following year. The final bid, to be lodged later this week, will include overhauls of Paisley’s town hall and arts centre, worth £22m and £2.5m respectively, a £3.5m venue on the site of the old Galbraith’s store and £10m worth of town centre improvements.

The council was forced to scale back a previous £56.7m vision for the museum after the HLF rejected a bid for up to £15m. The authority has since pledged £24.1m to the new scheme, which will create 42 jobs. The museum is due to close next summer to allow the first phase of work to begin.

Council leader Iain Nicolson said: “This is a wonderful piece of news from the HLF and couldn’t have come at a better time. The museum plans are central to our wider vision to transform Paisley’s future by harnessing the power of its internationally-significant heritage and cultural story.

“We know the town centre has its challenges, but the way people shop has changed forever, so we have to create new life and new footfall by finding new ways to bring people into the town. Paisley can do that by making the most of the unique selling point that is our heritage and textile story.

“Paisley has some amazing items in its collection – but the current building needs revamped in order to get them on display and fully tell the story of how it was once the centre of a global industry.”

Dame Seona Reid, chair of the HLF’S Scotland committee, said: “I know how much this project means to Paisley and its people. It’s vital to the great strides that are being made in revitalising the town, using its history and industrial heritage as the building blocks.”