Blists Hill
Project description
Located in the heart of the West Midlands, Blists Hill is a fascinating life sized interpretation of an average town situated around an East Shropshire Coalfield at the turn of the 20th century. A fifty four acre site, the development provides a unique insight into life in Victorian England and contains shops, a railway, clay mine alongside museum staff and actors dressed in period costume.
The project was primarily conducted by the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, one of the UK’s leading independent Museum operators.
- Horse and cart on Canal Street
Aims and objectives
The project was designed to enhance the existing town in order to create a more powerful and comprehensive depiction of Victorian civilian life. In addition to the creation of Canal Street, the project also included extensive conservation work on the historic wrought ironworks on site, contributing to its importance as one of the most significant heritage sites in the region with regards to Victorian England.
The development has raised the area’s profile and has contributed significantly to the local economy, attracting visitors from across the UK.
Project Start Date and End Date
The project began in late 2007. It has been developed in stages with the first phase of the project opening in April 2009, followed by the Visitor Centre in July and the Narrow Gauge Mine Railway in August.
Services offered
Blist’s Hill Victorian Town offers a range of facilities and services. The new extension includes:
- A Visitor Centre
- A new street of shops which includes a Post Office, Fried Fish Dealer, Draper’s Shop, Sweet Shop, Photographers and Artisans’ Quarter
- A clay-mining experience simulation- which includes short train journey from the town to the woods and a 20 minute video dialogue of a Father and Son at the coal mine site
- A gauge railway
- An Incline Lift
The museum also delivers a range of learning activities for schools and the local community.
- Blist’s Hill at night
Success factors
The success of the development was achieved by a number of factors.
Owned by the Ironbridge Gorge Trust, it is part of a collection of museums, which together charts an impressive, unrivalled comprehensive history of the Industrial Revolution.
Its unique blend of real life shops, buildings, railway and costumed actors and staff creates an unparalleled simulation of Victorian life and is therefore of both historical and educational importance, attracting schools and colleges from across the region.
Blists Hill Victorian Town was awarded gold at the 2009 West Midlands’ Excellence in Tourism Awards in September. The success of the development has also lead to it being nominated for the 2010 Excellence in England Award for the Large Visitor Attraction (visitors over 100, 000) category and long listed for the Art Fund prize 2010.
It has also been recognised for the diverse learning opportunities it has provided for schools and the wider community.
Business/operational model
The museum is managed by and is part of the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, one of the largest independent museums in the UK.
Visitors pay an entrance fee for the site and an additional fee applies to visit the clay mine.
Financing and delivery/procurement
The project cost £12 million in total and was funded by a range of partners including:
- Advantage West Midlands
- European Regional Development Funding
- Renaissance in the Regions
- DCMS/Wolfson Foundation
- British Postal Museum & Archive
- The private sector
Measurement and Monitoring
The success of the development can be measured in the increase in the amount of visitors to the Blist Hill Victorian Town, which has increased by 30% since 2008.
It has also significantly contributed to the local economy and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the region- in 2009 we welcomed over 550,000 visitors.
Future developments
Due to the success of the project, the museum is now looking to focus on some of the other museums in the group.
Steve Miller
The Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust
Legges Way, Madeley, Telford, Shropshire
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