Hartlepool's historic Heugh Battery Museum hopes to be back with a bang in 2021 after receiving lifeline

The Heugh Battery Museum on the Headland, which tells the story of the Bombardment of Hartlepool, is delighted to have been granted £24,600 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to ensure it will be able to reopen.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic and nationwide lockdown began, the museum has been closed to the public and its staff put on furlough.

Last spring, the museum launched a successful fundraising drive, backed by a Mail campaign and the people of the town, to save it from imminent closure.

Heugh Battery Museum manager Diane Stephens said: “Thanks to the National Lottery and its players we can now get back to work on the site and start to do all of the maintenance work which has built up during lockdown.

"We’re grateful that The National Lottery Heritage Fund is supporting us at this crucial time – it’s a lifeline to us and others who are passionate about sustaining heritage for the benefit of all.”

The museum is now working towards reopening for the February school half-term next year due to the amount of work needed to be done on the site.

A £50million National Lottery Heritage Emergency Fund was made available to provide emergency funding for the UK's heritage sector which has been dealt a big financial blow due to the pandemic.

Ros Kerslake, chief executive of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “Heritage has an essential role to play in making communities better places to live, supporting economic regeneration and benefiting our personal wellbeing.

"All of these things are going to be even more important as we emerge from this current crisis.

“Thanks to money raised by National Lottery players we are pleased to be able to lend our support to organisations such as the Heugh Battery Museum during this uncertain time.”

The battery museum occupies and preserves the site of the only First World War Battlefield in the UK.

Last year, supporters raised over £32,000 to keep it open with the largest proportion – over £23,000 – from a sponsored walk from Seaham to the Headland.

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