Alistair Hardaker
Image: Cornwall Museum & Art Gallery
Cornwall Museum and Art Gallery receives National Lottery Heritage Fund support to develop plans for final redevelopment phase ahead of 2027 application.
Cornwall Museum and Art Gallery has announced £440,000 of initial support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to develop plans for the final phase of its transformation project.
The funding, made possible by National Lottery players, will enable the Truro-based museum to prepare a full funding application for a National Lottery grant in 2027. A full funding application is expected to be submitted for the developed plans in 2026. The museum will also require a public fundraising campaign to achieve £1.3m in match funding.
Completed works include the redevelopment of the Mineral Gallery, which contains one of the most significant mineral collections in the world, alongside the Nature Gallery and Heart of Cornwall Gallery.
The upper balconies have been redeveloped to reinstate an Art Gallery featuring floor to ceiling salon hangs of nationally important artworks.
Museum Co-Director Jonathan Morton said the museum’s ambition is to “create a visitor experience fit for a new generation, and ensure Cornwall Museum and Art Gallery remains a public asset that belongs to everyone, and home to the objects, artefacts and history that tell the story of Cornwall.”
The museum’s River Street building comprises two former structures: Henderson’s Mining School and Truro Baptist Church. The museum said the final transformation phase is hoped to create a smoother visitor experience through both buildings, encompassing the upper galleries, improved educational and community facilities and retail and hospitality.
Co-director Bryony Robins said the redevelopment “celebrates creativity, inspires participation and brings the very best art, exhibitions and heritage to the people of Cornwall and its visitors.”
The museum reports its visitor numbers have more than doubled from 20,000 in 2019 to 42,000 in 2024/25. The Museum Development South West 2025 report estimates the museum makes an annual contribution of £1.2m to Cornwall’s economy.
