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Supporters of Nottingham Castle’s £24 million transformation face an agonising wait as its bid for funding enters a crucial stage.
Backers including Nottingham City Council have just submitted the final part of an application to the Heritage Lottery Fund for £13 million of the total.
It is the biggest slice of cash being provided from four sources to revamp the site and create a world-leading tourist attraction at the castle.
If it secures all the funding, the project will lead to a new visitor centre in the castle grounds, and new interactive galleries exploring the legend of Robin Hood and the castle’s 1,000-year history.
A decision on the £13 million – crucial for building work to start – is expected in November.
If the Heritage Lottery Fund gives the go ahead, and the other streams of funding are confirmed, work will start next year.
Graphic: Figures from the castle’s past gathered for a photo shoot to mark the application
Nigel Hawkins, head of culture at Nottingham City Council, said: “This is a really important part of the process and it’s also a real critical test in terms of what we’re proposing.
“We feel we’ve got a strong team, we’ve done a lot of work and the bid is quite extensive in terms of the detail and we hope it will stand us in good stead.”
Part of the bid includes and economic impact assessment, saying the work will generate an extra £90 million of visitor spend in the local economy over 10 years.
The project’s planners say this will create and sustain more than 3,700 extra jobs through visitor spending on tourism.
Nottingham Castle Transformation: Where £24 million is coming from
- Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) – £13m
- Nottingham City Council – £5.5m
- Fundraising via Nottingham Castle Trust – £3m
- Regeneration and other public funds – £2.5m
Increased access to the network of caves beneath the castle is also part of the plan, as are refurbished and new galleries.
Nottingham City Council first announced the plans in May 2014 and released the first artist’s impressions of the changes in April this year.
Organisers say the castle has huge potential to become a much bigger attraction, with 9.5 million people living within a 90-minute journey time and its current exhibitions yet to capitalise on the international appeal of Robin Hood.
