Creation of people’s history museum limps onwards

Plans have been lodged with Barnsley Council which would see new access steps and architectural features installed at the entrance to the town hall in Church Street.

A further planning application is for the removal of an existing car park and the redevelopment of gardens to form a new public open space with a fountain.

The proposals are part of the wider scheme to create the “Experience Barnsley” museum, which was originally set to open in July this year.

However, various delays have meant that the opening date has been put back, and is currently scheduled for almost a year later than originally planned.

A spokesman for Barnsley Council said yesterday that Experience Barnsley could open in “spring 2013”.

The Town Hall will still be used for civic functions, though many staff have been moved to new purpose built offices to make way for the museum.

Experience Barnsley, which is being created with cash from the Heritage Lottery Fund, will be the first museum to tell the story of the town and the countryside around it.

Artefacts already donated include a pit helmet used by a father and son, a letter sent by author Rudyard Kipling and film footage showing the town in days gone by.

In preparation for the museum’s opening, Barnsley Town Hall has been cleaned using a low-pressure water spray system to remove layers of dirt which had accumulated over the last 80 years.

Meanwhile, brickwork has been repointed, stonework has been restored and new double glazed windows have been installed while the building has been closed to the public.

The first and second floor offices of the town hall have been refurbished, while the museum will be located on the lower floors.

Barnsley Council had hoped to close a section of Market Hill, directly in front of the Town Hall, to traffic in an attempt to create a open public area, but those plans were dropped after spending cuts for local authorities were introduced.