Barrow’s multi award-winning Dock Museum is celebrating a double-success – and is preparing for a significant investment.
Managers at the museum, which is operated by Westmorland and Furness Council, have just learned that the Dock Museum has secured £239,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund towards delivering a major new heritage project, ‘Barrow in Focus’.
The two-year project will celebrate and safeguard Barrow's industrial and social heritage through the nationally significant photographic collection of local photographer Ken Royall.
Charlotte Hawley, Westmorland and Furness Council’s Museums and Collections Manager, explained: “We are thrilled to secure this significant funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and an additional £10,000 from Furness Maritime Trust to deliver this exciting project.
“Thanks to National Lottery players, this funding will allow us to digitise and fully catalogue more than 20,000 photographs and negatives from the Ken Royall collection, ensuring they are cared for and accessible for future generations, and making this remarkable record of Barrow’s people, industries and communities freely accessible online for the first time.
“Alongside improving the care and accessibility of the collection, the project will work closely with local communities to capture memories, stories and personal reflections connected to the photographs.
“Through oral history projects, exhibitions, outreach activities, photography workshops and a community campaign called Were You There?, residents will have the opportunity to share their own experiences and help shape how Barrow's story is told.
“With a strong focus on young people, families and older residents, the project aims to build skills, confidence and pride in place while strengthening connections between generations and ensuring Barrow's heritage remains a living and relevant part of community life.’’
Helen Featherstone, Director, England, North, at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, commented on the award: “We are delighted to be supporting the Dock Museum with this grant, thanks to National Lottery players.
“It’s fantastic news that the museum is showcasing the rich industrial and engineering heritage of Barrow-in-Furness through this fascinating photographic collection, and giving local people, and visitors from further afield the opportunity to explore these important stories.”
However, the museum’s celebrations don’t end there.
News of The National Lottery Heritage Fund success follows hot on the heels of the Dock Museum winning the prestigious Best Art/Culture Venue prize at the recent Cumbria Life Awards 2026.
This adds to the national recognition earlier this year when the Dock Museum was ranked among the very best visitor attractions in the UK following a VisitEngland assessment – achieving an exceptional 92% score in a ‘mystery shopper’ visitor experience evaluation - and last year’s success at the Cumbria Tourism Awards, where the museum received the Accessible and Inclusive Tourism accolade.
The council is also continuing to invest in the museum, which is uniquely housed within a 19th-century graving dock.
Starting next month, essential heating maintenance work will begin, requiring the building to close for a period so the collections can be protected during the works.
The Dock Museum will close from 4 November and will re-open in the new year.
Charlotte Hawley continued: “This is a unique building and it’s crucial for the long-term care of the collection that the environment is consistent, so it’s great that this work is being done.
“That will mean closing the museum in to the new year while the work is carried out to allow us to move parts of the collection into safe storage, but that won’t affect the start of work on the ‘Barrow in Focus’ project, which we are all very excited about.’’