The project will reconnect some of Chatham’s earliest features including the North and South Mast Ponds constructed in 1696 and 1702, the adjacent ‘Mast Houses and Mould Loft’, and ‘Wheelwright Shop’. This redevelopment work will provide visitors with a four and a half hectare, free to enter heritage gateway and improved entrance to the Dockyard in the mast pond area, and in doing so make the most of the important mast making monuments. This new space will encourage everyone to explore the history of the dockyard and its defences and also form the starting point for a series of discovery trails.
Bill Ferris OBE, Chief Executive of Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust said; “This is fantastic news, we are thrilled that we have received the Stage One pass from Heritage Lottery Fund, an organisation which has already done so much in supporting the heritage of this amazing place. Visitors’ overall experience when going to see The Historic Dockyard Chatham and the wider world class military and naval heritage in Medway will be dramatically improved through the provision of a new and very much enhanced sense of arrival, with layered orientation and interpretation – appropriate to arrival at a destination of outstanding historic significance. However, the hard work is yet to come and we are ready for it! We must raise £4m within 15 months to enable us to match the £4.5m allocation from Heritage Lottery Fund to complete the project. We are currently in negotiations with a significant funder to cover the majority of the remainder”.
< Mr Ferris continued; “We will be making an exciting announcement about this project here at The Historic Dockyard Chatham on Friday 17th August. The name of our ‘ship beneath the floor’ and its major historic significance to Britain’s ‘command of the oceans’ will be revealed!”Stuart McLeod, Head of the Heritage Lottery Fund South East, said:
“The Historic Dockyard at Chatham is an extraordinary site that charts Britain’s impressive naval history. The Heritage Lottery Fund is delighted to be giving our initial support for the ‘Command of the Oceans’ project which includes plans to dramatically improve the visitor experience at Chatham and reveal important archaeological finds for the first time. We are looking forward to seeing these exciting and innovative plans develop over the next few months.”
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