Some new developments

It may have taken us 3 years, and twice brought disappointment and frustration, but in late September, on our third attempt, the Heritage Lottery Fund agreed to support our plans for new exhibitions on the Navy in the 20th and 21st Centuries.

This means we can now really crack on with a project that we have wanted to do for many years – one we are eager to achieve by 2014 to ensure the Navy is properly represented when the commemorations for the Centenary of World War I begin.

Despite the Navy’s enormous contribution to Britain’s history in the 20th Century, and the impact it has had on so many lives, either directly or indirectly, in this country and in every corner of the globe, there is no single exhibition that people can go to that interprets this story.  It is one of service and personal sacrifice, which is distinct from ‘ordinary’ life as perhaps you or I know it, and yet which closely mirrors the technological and social changes which have impacted every person on the planet over the past 110 years.


Storehouse Number 10 as it is now


So our goal is clear, but achieving it will be an exciting challenge that we look forward to reporting on in future blog posts.  We have to restore and modernise the ground floor of an 18th Century Dockyard Storehouse to give us more exhibition space (900 m² as opposed to the 200 m² that we have at the moment).  And even that won’t be enough, so we have to identify the central themes, pick from the rich variety of artefacts, photographs and oral history interviews in our collections the key items that will speak most powerfully to our visitors, and select a range of display methods that will cater for the different skills and interests of those visitors.  We must fully grasp the opportunity that the new exhibitions will present to widen the appeal of the Museum, not just through their content and approach, but by developing activities and events for schools and community groups alongside them.

And we have to raise £3 million!


How part of the new galleries could look


Along with everyone else these days, we are now ‘on a journey’ (or perhaps we should say ‘voyage’.)  But, thanks to HLF, we can see our destination on the horizon.  We look forward to working towards it and to recording our progress along the way.  You’re welcome to join us.