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Thanks to a new government arts and culture fund, two London museums are getting a financial boost. The Brentford-based London Museum of Water and Steam will receive a hefty £2.6 million, while the Foundling Museum in Brunswick Square will get £319,000 of financial support.
Smaller museums like these are the target of the new ‘Arts Everywhere Fund’, which aims to aid institutions in danger of closing or in need of infrastructure improvements. The £270 million fund’s cash will be spread across the UK, and the fund itself marks the 60th anniversary of the first ever culture policy document published by the government.
But let's get back to the London museums receiving funding – who are they, what are they about, and what will they use the money for?
The London Museum of Water and Steam’s name is a pretty big giveaway. Based in a Victorian engine house, the Brentford institution concerns all things steam engines, pipes, sewers and tunnels. The director of the museum, Hannah Harte, has said that the ‘funding is vital’ and will be used to restore its Great Engine House, making sure the building is watertight.
In Bloomsbury, the Foundling Museum works to bring historic stories of children in care to light on the grounds of a 1700s ‘foundling hospital’ for abandoned infants. The museum works with artists, musicians and designers to put on thoughtful exhibitions centring on children and the people who care for them.
Emma Ridgway, the Foundling Museum’s director, says it is ‘excited and delighted’ by the funding that will be used on ‘long-overdue repairs to our unique building, which will make it safer, stronger, and even more welcoming’.
Either (or both) of those sound right up your street? Find out more about visiting the Water and Steam Museum here and Foundling Museum here.
Time Out’s ultimate guide to the best museums in London.
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