Open day at Museum Learning and Resource Centre

Herefordshire residents will get the chance to see the new completed Museum Learning and Resource Centre in Friar Street, Hereford, when an open day is held on Wednesday (November 21).

The event runs from 11am until 3pm and will include guided tours of the new hi-tech facility together with refreshments.

Herefordshire Council and the Heritage Lottery Fund have jointly funded the £1.8 million project which provides one of the best museum collection facilities in the West Midlands.

The extension offers a learning centre able to seat 60 people in a lecture format or 35 seated at tables and can also be divided into two smaller rooms.

100,000 objects will be housed at the resource centre including a Turner painting, a collection of watercolours and other work by 18th century Leominster artist John Scarlet-Davies and a collection from 19th century county painter Brian Hatton. The extensive learning collection and the natural history collections are also transferring to the centre. The objects will be kept under state-of-the-art storage conditions.
There will also be a range of learning programmes for school groups and adult learners, public open days, a public display in the entrance area and facilities for the fine art collection.

Staff transferred to the centre at the start of November and are now preparing to move collections in. The exhibition and learning programmes will open fully in January 2008, so this open day and an event on 21st December are a chance for a preview.

The building has access and parking for visitors with disabilities. Entrance is free.