Teign Heritage has been awarded a Culture Recovery grant of £51,000 by Arts Council England, as reported at the end of October 2020.

A major part of the grant will be used to create a new museum display and community exhibition celebrating the Morgan Giles Shipyard and the employees, as well as the history of shipbuilding in Teignmouth and Shaldon.

This will mark the centenary of Morgan Giles establishing his yard on the River Beach in Teignmouth in 1920 and the launch of his first ship from there in 1921.

The appointed artists Amy McCarthy and Sam Lock are well-known locally as the inspirational leading artists in the TRAIL exhibition which is on display every summer along the Promenade.

They work from TAAG in Northumberland Place and also lead creative workshops for various community groups. Sam and Amy would love to hear from you if you have photos of the shipyard or have family who worked there.

Sam will have another role in the project – she will be continuing to support the well-being of current museum volunteers, a role she began in 2020 with funding from the National Lottery Heritage Emergency Fund. She will also be helping to find new volunteers, for when the museum is allowed to reopen. Please get in touch via the Teign Heritage website if you would like to become involved.

The other local appointee is Sarah Marshall-Maun, who first volunteered at the museum when she was just 13. Sarah will continue to manage the Social media sites and do publicity for the Culture Recovery Project, as well as setting up an education programme of online resource packs based on Museum topics and objects, for schools and community groups.

The first two packs will be similar to that produced by Sarah for the First World War and will cover the Second World War and the Victorians. Sarah would welcome ideas for future resources, such as reminiscence packs.

In May 2021 the museum celebrates 10 years since it re-opened with a new extension. The centre now hosts talks, art and music workshops, exercise classes and other community groups as well as welcoming visitors to the galleries and the small shop and coffee area.

More than 60 volunteers worked at the museum, welcoming visitors, maintaining the archive and hosting school visits.

The Museum has five websites about the history of Teignmouth and Shaldon, as well as social media pages, bringing local information and images to wider audiences.

Using the grant from Arts Council Culture Recovery fund, Teign Heritage aims to reinvigorate all these activities, make radical improvements to the museum’s financial future and ensure the sustainability of the Museum and the Teign Heritage Centre, both as a tourist venue, as an archive of local information and as a community hub for local activities.

Museum professionals and consultants have been engaged to give guidance on new fundraising initiatives, refreshing the museum shop, streamlining management and increasing visitors both in person and online.

Museum curator, Lou Bagnald, who made the application to the Arts Council, sees the future of the Heritage Centre as both a tourist venue and an online presence encouraging people to visit the local area. She said: ‘We are overjoyed to have been selected to receive this funding. We look forward to using these vital funds to help us weather the current storm, while continuing to develop the Heritage Centre as an indispensable community hub.’

The Project will continue till the end of March and regular updates on progress will be posted on social media and on the main museum website www.teignheritage.org.uk.