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Roman Baths Museum makes Art Fund Prize long list - show your support!

The Bath & North East Somerset Council-run Roman Baths Museum has made the long list for the 2011 Art Fund Prize, the most prestigious award in the museum world.

The announcement was made by Michael Portillo, Chairman of the judging panel, on BBC’s Front Row arts programme on Wednesday 2nd February.

The purpose of The Art Fund Prize is to recognise and stimulate originality and excellence in museums and galleries in the UK, and increase public appreciation and enjoyment of all they have to offer.

A single award of £100,000 is presented to a museum or gallery whose entry, in the opinion of the judges, best meets the Prize criteria.

The Roman Baths Development, an investment of £5.5 million pounds by the Council, has transformed the visitor experience. It is designed to secure the future of the museum as a leading visitor attraction and to radically improve the quality of public access to the site.

Stephen Clews, Manager of the Roman Baths said, ‘Obviously we are delighted to have made the long list for this award, which is a significant achievement. It is also just the beginning of a rigorous judging and appraisal process that will take place between now and the presentation of the Award in June. 

'At least four judges will be visiting the Roman Baths to look at different aspects of The Roman Baths Development and we will be in competition with the very best projects in the museum world today.’

Cllr Terry Gazzard, Cabinet Member for Development and Major Projects said: ‘I believe this recognition for the Roman Baths Development is richly deserved. The Council committed to supporting the redevelopment of the Roman Baths in 2004 and has followed that through with this five-year development programme. It has been an investment for the long term with sustainability as the driver, which is an important feature in how our museums and heritage sites are managed.’

The Roman Baths development plan is designed to increase visitor numbers and boost revenue which benefits local taxpayers across the area. The Council’s Heritage Services make a surplus of over £3m each year which is reinvested in other frontline Council services such as street cleaning, libraries and waste services.

Please show your support for the Roman Baths by voting here. You can find more information about the Roman Baths on Facebook and Twitter.

Posted by:

Cedric Sureshkumar

Sector:

Art & Antiques