A project to create a history centre for County Durham has been given a £150,000 boost.
Durham County Council submitted a planning application last month to restore and refurbish the Grade II-listed Mount Oswald Manor as a home for the county’s archive, heritage and registration services.
Now the authority has been told it has been successful in applying for a grant from the Wolfson Foundation to help create an exhibition space within the centre, should planning permission be approved.
An inspiring and engaging exhibition programme is a key part of the proposed history centre development and the money will help make this possible.
Cllr Joy Allen, cabinet member for transformation, culture and tourism, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to have been successful in our application for support through the Wolfson Foundation.
“We have carried out a great deal of consultation with the public in advance of submitting the planning application, and exhibitions featured very highly as something people felt the centre should provide.
“This money will help us open up our collections to a wider audience by enabling us to create engaging, inspiring and interactive exhibitions in all public areas of the development.”
In addition to the county’s archives, which are currently accessed more than one million times a year, the centre would house historic registration records, historic environment and archaeology records and local studies collections.
The Durham Light Infantry (DLI) Collection would also be included, bringing together all items from the collection with DLI archives cared for by Durham County Record Office, for the first time since 1998.
The project would also see the relocation from Aykley Heads of Durham Register Office, offering enhanced facilities for weddings and civil ceremonies in the historic surroundings of the manor house.
The application for Durham History Centre has been submitted by Durham County Council and, if it is approved, the ownership of the Manor House and surrounding land will be transferred by owners, The Banks Group, to the county council for a nominal fee to secure its future use and benefit for the people of County Durham.
It is hoped that construction can begin in 2021, with the centre opening to the public in 2023.
Copies of the applications and plan(s) are available on the council’s website at www.durham.gov.uk. Comments can be submitted online, submitted by e-mail to [email protected] or in writing to Planning Development, Room 4/86-102, County Hall, Durham, DH1 5UL during the public consultation period.
