Nottingham City Council has approved the decision to spend a grant of £226,847 awarded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) for the Wollaton Transformation Programme.
The grant will be used to transform the Natural History Museum’s permanent galleries at Wollaton Hall, making them more engaging for a wider audience.
The newly refurbished galleries will become part of the overall free offer at Wollaton.
The Wollaton Hall Transformation Programme was included in the current capital programme following approval by the Executive Board in September 2019.
The works were phased subject to securing external funding to ensure the project’s affordability.
Audience research indicates that while Wollaton Hall is greatly cherished by local communities, the un-refurbished galleries were perceived as tired and unengaging.
The grant from NLHF will refurbish the next stage of work, continuing the transformation of the spaces over the last five years.
The ‘do nothing’ option, which would mean not accepting the grant and leaving the galleries un-refurbished, was also considered.
However, this would negatively impact visitor dwell time and secondary spending, potentially putting the sustainability of the site at risk.
The grant funding will be subject to terms and conditions, which if not complied with, could lead to the withholding, reduction, or clawback of such funding from the council. The grant funding will be used to fund Phase 4 of the Wollaton Hall transformation programme, which was included in the initial procurement documents for the contract.
The decision is subject to call-in, with the call-in deadline set for August 9, 2023. If not called in, the decision will come into force on August 10, 2023.
The decision documents, including the decision details (DD4997) and the equality impact assessment for the National Lottery Heritage Fund External Funding Approval, are available on the Nottingham City Council’s website.
