Cambridge Museum of Technology receives a grant of £99,932 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund for an exciting heritage project, Full Steam Ahead. Made possible by money raised by National Lottery players, the project will allow the museum to increase capacity and reach more audiences.
Supported through The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the ‘Full Steam Ahead’ project will recruit two new heritage roles, to expand the museums capacity for both general opening, and for increased education and community outreach work. The funding will also reinvigorate existing space in the Engineer’s House to be used as a space for community hires. Building on existing fantastic partnerships within the local Abbey community, the museum will offer more opportunities for engaging with industrial heritage and our collection, through events and workshops. The museum will be able to expand its schools programme, reaching more young people and engaging with teachers to form lasting links. To facilitate this expanding engagement, there will be new opportunities to train as an education volunteer to help the museum deliver this exciting programme. Digital education and family resources will also be developed alongside this new activity, to ensure the significant collections remain widely accessible for all.
Visible from all corners of Cambridge, the original chimney at the museum stands tall as a reminder of our industrial past, and a landmark beacon of our relevance today. The museum occupies a key Riverside site and has huge potential to grow as a community hub, leisure facility and educational centre. The Victorian sewage pumping station is a scheduled monument on Historic England’s At-Risk Register, and some of our (working) technologies on display are the last of their kind. Visitors to our museum can expect to learn the story of sewage and waste disposal in the Victorian Pumping Station, as well as discover Cambridge’s fascinating but forgotten industries. The important Pye collection displays Cambridge’s impressive early high-tech companies.
Commenting on the award, Lucy Thompson, Trustee, said: “We are thrilled to have received this support thanks to National Lottery players and we are very excited about the potential this funding has to engage even more audiences with our important museum and collections.”
