Image: (SS Great Britain Trust)
Bristol’s SS Great Britain Trust receives major funding from Philip Nicholas Trust and National Lottery Heritage Fund to redevelop museum and launch community engagement programme.
Bristol attraction the SS Great Britain is to redevelop its Dockyard Museum, following a £1m funding boost.
The museum will close for redevelopment in spring 2026 and reopen the same year, with Ralph Applebaum Associates commissioned to lead the project design.
The SS Great Britain Trust is to transform the visitor experience through community-led heritage initiatives, it said.
The Trust is continuing active fundraising efforts to complete the museum project, having previously secured £800,000 from the Philip Nicholas Trust and the Headley Trust.
This latest investment comprises £705,000 from the Philip Nicholas Trust and £245,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
The capital will fund a “complete redevelopment” of the Dockyard Museum, and the launch of a community engagement programme called Global Voyages. It will include a new community hub, a dedicated Community History Curator post, and multiple pathways for community members to join as researchers and advisory group members. The project aims to ensure narratives include those historically underrepresented in heritage spaces.
An immersive experience is to be created focusing on the journeys of over 30,000 passengers and crew who travelled aboard the SS Great Britain ship between 1845 and 1886.
SS Great Britain CEO Andrew Edwards said: “By working side-by-side with Bristol residents, we can ensure the Dockyard Museum, and all our storytelling and research reflects not only the ship’s international journeys, but the lived experiences and perspectives of the city today.”
The SS Great Britain’s Community Advisory Group said: “By having a permanent community space, there is more confidence about sharing perspectives, and that the SS Great Britain can reflect the diversity of Bristol. Building and sharing a dedicated space allows us to create our own heritage at the SS Great Britain, which can last for future generations.”
