Nearly £4m awarded to Elsecar Heritage Centre

Barnsley Museums has been awarded £3.93m to transform Elsecar Heritage Centre into an "internationally recognised" visitor destination.

The cash comes from the Arts Council's Cultural Development Fund which aims to improve access to arts and culture.

Barnsley Council's leader Sir Stephen Houghton said the money would have a "major impact" on the area.

The heritage centre is a living history centre which celebrates the area's industrial past.

It also comprises shops, businesses and studios.

The funding is part of £48m being distributed by the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to 63 organisations across England, through the Cultural Development Fund, the Museums Estate and Development Fund and the Libraries Improvement Fund.

Barnsley's grant will be used to develop derelict spaces at the site into new creative studios and galleries. Outdoor and indoor areas will also be improved to offer areas to host cultural events.

"Thanks to the generosity of the DCMS-funded Arts Council managed Culture Development Fund, significant investment in the village will have a major impact on its future, catapulting it even further to become an internationally recognised visitor destination," Sir Stephen Houghton said.

The developments, he said, would make Elsecar a hub for cultural connectivity across Barnsley and would support a new cultural programme that would "hugely benefit the borough economically and culturally".

Funding will also be used to establish creative hubs linked to Elsecar across all the town's in the district.

"These hubs and their activity will have positive impacts on our economy but also on people's health and wellbeing," Sir Stephen said.

Barnsley Libraries has also been awarded separate funding of £144,375 for improvements to Dodworth Library.

Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected] or send video here.