New visitors centre moves ahead at Black Country Living Museum
This image shows what the Black Country Living Museum's new visitor centre could look like - as the multi-million pound project moves a step forward with the appointment of architects.
Napier Clarke Architects will design the centre, which is the central feature of a £21.7m Forging Ahead development project at the Tipton Road attraction based in Dudley.
The visitor centre will allow the site to link up more closely with other attractions at Castle Hill in Dudley, such as Dudley Zoo and Dudley Castle.
The Heritage Lottery Fund has provided £10m which will allow the attraction to be expanded by a third under new plans, which will also incorporate a new 1940s to 60s town.
A total of 24 architects across Europe applied to carry out the build, with Buckinghamshire-based Napier Clarke Architects successfully winning the bid.
Andrew Lovett, chief executive at BCLM, said: “The whole selection panel was very impressed with the highly experienced and enthusiastic team Napier Clarke Architects had brought together on their pitch; they really seemed to understand what we are trying to achieve.
"We hope a new contemporary visitor centre will provide a visually fascinating juxtaposition to the historic area of the museum’s site and create an excellent welcoming experience for our visitors.”
The funding has proved a major boost for the museum and Black Country tourism as a whole.
The upgrade is set to bring in an extra half a million visitors through the attraction's doors each year.
It will bring in a new time period to the attraction and focus on the Black Country in the post-war period, up until the closure of the Baggeridge Coal Mine, in Sedgley, in 1968.
The visitor's centre will be a welcome point for up to 5,000 visitors per day as visitor numbers are expected to grow.
Steve Clarke, who is a director of Napier Clarke Architects alongside Amy Napier, said: "We are delighted to have been appointed by Black Country Living Museum to design its ‘New Visitor Welcome’ facilities.
"It’s an important project for one of the UK’s most interesting museums, and very exciting for Napier Clarke to take forward our most significant cultural project to date.”
