The revamp of Ipswich Museum has been boosted thanks to a £376,850 grant by Arts Council England to carry out repairs.

Arts Council England has a Museum Estate and Development Fund (MEND) which has given this cash to the council to ensure planned redevelopment projects at the museum. 

The project will restore and improve the purpose-built museum to display more of the town’s collections – and refurbish existing galleries along with re-roofing the building.

After re-roofing is completed with the latest cash, other planned redevelopment and improvement works at the museum will continue as part of the larger ongoing project to restore and redisplay Ipswich’s internationally significant collections.

It was announced in early February that the project to revamp the High Street venue had gone over budget by about £2.7million.

The whole scheme to reopen the museum is now forecast to cost in the region of £11.4m, Ipswich Borough Council had previously said.

Pots such as the National Lottery Heritage Fund are contributing towards the renovations, which aim to create an immersive and educational experience for visitors in the town when it is set to reopen next year.

Ipswich Borough Council's director of operations and place James Fairclough said: “We’re delighted to receive this timely and essential funding support through the Arts Council administered MEND fund for Ipswich Museum.

Ipswich Star: Ipswich Museum has been closed since 2022Ipswich Museum has been closed since 2022 (Image: JASON NOBLE LDRS)

"Securing MEND funding has ensured that these much-needed improvement works can commence immediately, after which the other planned redevelopment works at the Museum will continue as part of the larger ongoing project to restore and redisplay Ipswich’s internationally significant collections.”

Ipswich Museum is a Grade II* Listed building with Victorian architecture and housing collections special to the town. 

The latest funding is a part of larger repairs which the museum has been undergoing since late 2022.