WREKIN MUSEUM PARTNERSHIP

If you were thinking 'I didn't know there was a Wrekin Museum?' you're right - there isn't. But one day there will be. After many years of conversations about the idea of creating a museum in Wellington, at a public meeting held in November 2007 it was resolved to form a group that would work towards making this a reality - and so the Wrekin Museum Partnership was born. As a member of that Partnership, Wellington H2A have offered to host this page outlining its aims, ideas and ambitions.

You can support our plans for a museum by

OUR MISSION STATEMENT

The aim of the Wrekin Museum Partnership is to create, in Wellington, a dedicated museum space that tells the story of Shropshire’s best known landmark, The Wrekin, and the towns and villages that have grown up around it. Exploring the history of The Wrekin and its surroundings from 600 million B.C. to today, we want people to discover its unique geology, its diverse wildlife and the people who have lived, worked and played there for thousands of years. We want to create a high quality, innovative museum environment that will attract and engage a range of people of all ages and backgrounds, both from the local area and visitors form further afield.

To meet our aims, we will need to:

raise awareness of and interest in the story that we have to tell – and why it’s a story worth telling, through publicity, literature and work to engage local peoplemake the case for a permanent museum space in order to gain the support of key organisations and secure funding from appropriate local, regional and national bodiesexplore the different ways of displaying and interpreting the natural and human heritage of The Wrekin and its hinterland, including a combination of traditional approaches and innovative, interactive multi-media techniques

MAKING THE CASE

Why is there a need for a Museum of The Wrekin?

Education and awareness-raising - heritage and the environment: There is currently no permanent exhibition showcasing the history of East Shropshire beyond the Industrial Revolution (at Ironbridge Gorge). Whilst this is by far the most internationally well known part of our local story, there are many more chapters that are untold and which local young people and adults alike remain unaware of. The Wrekin is Shropshire's most famous and most visited hill, and its narrative is at the heart of our geological and human history in this part of the county.

 

Community, identity and 'place-shaping': as nearby Telford continues to grow in the decades ahead, the borough's historic connection to the surrounding landscape that shaped this area - and to the centuries before Telford - risks becoming increasingly weak for local people. As such, we believe that celebrating the heritage of the area's historic landscapes and settlements in an attractive museum setting can make a key contribution to sustaining a positive, distinctive identity and 'sense of place' for people in this part of Shropshire.

 

Borough towns and the visitor economy: We believe that, in the spirit of the Council's Borough Towns Initiative, a quality, moderately sized museum offer could be a key contributor in driving interest, confidence and economic revival in Wellington. For that reason, many of us are ambitious that any museum space must be sufficiently sized, resourced and promoted as to make a tangible contribution to the local economy. Whilst it would be unlikely to bring people to the area in the way that Ironbridge does, it would add to the list of 'things to do' in the immediate area (alongside Sunnycroft) and encourage more people to spend time and money in Wellington once already in the county.