Amuseum: £4m funding for new Blackpool museum

Blackpool is to receive £4m in government funding towards plans for a new museum telling the story of the resort.

Plans for the museum, which has a working title name of Amuseum, were first revealed last year.

The museum, set to open in 2020, will be located on the world famous Golden Mile in the former Sands Venue.

A further £400,000 has been awarded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, with a conditional £4m towards the plans.

Amuseum will feature artefacts, film, music and performance to tell the story of the resort and would be a "blend of museum and visitor attraction", the council said.

It's hoped it will attract almost 300,000 visitors a year and is aimed of "engaging younger audiences in the history of Blackpool".

Gillian Campbell, deputy leader of Blackpool Council, said the funding deals are "critical pieces in a £13 million funding jigsaw".

"We are now seeking additional funding from the Growth Deal and Coastal Communities Fund to help complete the funding that needs to be achieved," she said.

Blackpool first revealed plans to open a £26m museum for the resort in the Winter Gardens last July but this was scrapped months later for financial reasons.

At the time, Blackpool Council said "large costs" to develop the Grade II* listed building resulted in an £8m funding gap and the financial risk was "too high".

The latest £4m boost comes from the Northern Cultural Regeneration Fund set up to benefit areas with "historically low levels of cultural and creative investment".

The fund was announced last year as a legacy of the Great Exhibition of the North, which will be held this summer in Newcastle and Gateshead.

The additional £4m lottery award is subject to a second round bid, with a decision on this expected to be made in March 2019.