Museum delays reopening as bad weather hinders repairs

A Lancashire museum undergoing roof repairs has delayed its reopening until next year due to severe weather conditions.

Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery closed temporarily on 1 November to allow for work to take place and was expected to reopen on 29 November. The £554,700 roof replacement scheme is partly funded by Arts Council England’s (ACE) Museum Estate and Development fund.

A spokesperson for Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery told the Lancashire Telegraph it now plans to reopen on 3 January.

“We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause, a 150-year-old roof does need a lot of TLC, and a new roof will ensure that we can continue to care for our collections without worry of water ingress for years to come.”

Previously, water leakage had caused internal damage to the building, limiting the display of the museum’s collections.

The work is being financed by a £365,000 ACE grant and £189,700 from the museum’s owner, Blackburn with Darwen Council.

The gallery recently won National Portfolio Organisation status for 2023-26, worth £148,000 annually.