Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre receives funding support from Arts Council England due to COVID-19

Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre has received more than £17,000 from Arts Council England’s COVID-19 Emergency Response Package.

The £17,250 funding is aimed at supporting heritage and cultural organisations that have been impacted by the coronavirus outbreak and the required lockdown measures.

The project has been made possible due to National Lottery players and National Lottery funds made available to the Arts Council.

Centre staff recognised the important role of the attraction within the local community and that it has been dramatically affected due to the closure. But the team have seen there are ways the centre may still support service users, despite the current measures in place.

A project to create a multi-sensory loans box offer, bringing areas of the Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre to life in a portable loans service was created by the museum team, which will be loaned out to audiences and schools.

It is hoped the ‘Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre in a Box’, with artefacts, newly-commissioned local artworks, recordings of the fishing history, smell cards and activities, will help the attraction to engage with audiences and schools, even at times when the main building is closed.

The project gives a special opportunity to work with local artists and the creative sector to create a unique educational resource that will support the educational outreach programme, as well as provide an important way of interacting when physical attendance to the attraction is not possible.

Councillor Callum Procter, portfolio holder for heritage, culture and leisure at North East Lincolnshire Council, said: “The project and bid was submitted to the second funding round to the Arts Council in April and was one of 14,000 applications made by organisations nationally.

“To be successful is a real boost to the Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre team who are looking forward to working with the community to create these resources that should provide a powerful addition to the educational offer here for many years to come”.

The project is one of a number of local heritage projects taking place in the town, with works on the redevelopment of the historic waterside at Alexandra Dock and the restoration of the Grade 2 listed Corporation Bridge.