ELY Museum is celebrating after hearing that the Heritage Lottery Fund is going to give them a grant worth almost £50,000. The museum, on the corner of Market Street and Lynn Road, will use the £49,500 to employ a new member of staff who will improve acc

ELY Museum is celebrating after hearing that the Heritage Lottery Fund is going to give them a grant worth almost £50,000.

The museum, on the corner of Market Street and Lynn Road, will use the £49,500 to employ a new member of staff who will improve access to the museum's collections that are not on display.

Elie Hughes, acting curator at the museum, said: "We're absolutely delighted."

"It means we can really make the most of the collections we have in reserve at the museum and hopefully get them out on display."

The part-time documentation officer will work for two years to bring the storage and documentation of the collection up to a higher standard, and the museum hopes to get all the information about the objects in storage on-line in the future.

Once appointed, the officer will work with several volunteers to produce temporary exhibitions using the reserve collections.

Some of the money will also be spent on presentation equipment to allow the officer to give talks on the collections and it is hoped the project will help the museum broaden its community involvement and encourage more people to volunteer.

Robert Clasby, chairman of the trustees of Ely Museum, said: "The trustees are extremely pleased to have gained the support of the Heritage Lottery Fund in this project.

"It demonstrates that, with the support of East Cambridgeshire District Council, we are on

the right path to providing the

best possible service for our community."

It is hoped that the position will be advertised in July and that the documentation officer will start in October.

INFO: For more information on the museum, including volunteer work, call 01353 666655.