Coronavirus: Bronte Parsonage raising money to stay open

The future of the Bronte Parsonage is under threat after losing an estimated half a million pounds during lockdown.

The pandemic closed the museum in Haworth, West Yorkshire, but it reopened to the public earlier.

An online festival next month called #Bronte2020 hopes to raise enough money to keep the site going.

The parsonage, which was the family home of author sisters Charlotte, Anne and Emily Bronte, usually attracts 70,000 visitors a year.

"The parsonage is a focal point for the global popularity of the Brontes," said Dr Claire O'Callaghan, who is one of the academics behind the fundraising event.

"It is a site of pilgrimage for literary enthusiasts worldwide - the effects of the museum potentially closing permanently would be detrimental for many.

"The knock-on effects for the local community - its business and residents - would also be manifold, especially as Haworth's economy relies chiefly on Bronte Country tourism."

Although it received emergency funding as one of a number of venues described by the culture secretary as the "crown jewels" in the arts sector, the Bronte Society said it was facing an estimated end-of-year deficit of £100,000.

"Being closed since March has resulted in a loss of expected income of over £500,000, an amount that would usually keep us going during the quieter winter months," it said.

"When we reopen, we know that recovery will be slow - a combination of the intimacy of the historic rooms and the measures required to keep staff and visitors safe will limit our ability to welcome visitors back in the numbers required to be sustainable."

The society, which runs the museum, has launched a JustGiving page which has raised £10,000 from about 300 supporters.

Funds raised by #Bronte2020 on 4 September will go towards the crowdfunding appeal, with more than 40 speakers from around the world scheduled to take part.

The 11-hour event, which Dr O'Callaghan, from Loughborough University, is organising with Dr Sarah Fanning from Mount Allison University in Canada, will take place across two time zones, catering for Bronte fans on both sides of the Atlantic.

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