Pumping station repair project 'nearing completion'

Restoration work on a historical pumping station is almost complete as it marks its 140th anniversary.

More than £500,000 has been spent on Papplewick pumping station in Nottinghamshire, with the current project beginning in February.

The site supplied Nottingham with clean water for almost 100 years.

All of the works are expected to be completed by early October.

As part of the project, a wooden porch that had been affected by rot has been replaced, while work has also been carried out on the 120ft (36.57m) chimney.

The wall around the site - which became a museum in 1975 - has also been repaired.

Arts Council England's museum estate and development fund gave £518,000 for the repairs, with a further £58,840 provided by the pumping station's landlord, Severn Trent Water.

Ashley Smart, museum director for the site, said the restoration project was crucial to keeping the pumping station in good condition.

"The point of the work was to stabilise the site for the next 50-60 years ," he said.

"If we hadn't acted, the deterioration would have got far worse [and] cost a lot more money.

"Now that we've done the work, visitors are going to see a fantastic site."

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