Aerospace Bristol receives £470k support from South Gloucestershire Council
The funding will help the museum to increase school visits, deliver an exciting programme of visitor activities, and grow as a hub for the local community
Aerospace Bristol is set to receive £470k of support from South Gloucestershire Council over the next three years, helping the museum to continue offering family days out, delivering its award-winning schools programme, and sharing important stories from our region’s local heritage.
A-level students visiting Aerospace Bristol.
The council, which has been a major stakeholder and supporter of Aerospace Bristol since the museum opened in late 2017, has granted Bristol Aero Collection Trust £61,000 to increase school visits in 2023/24 and £31,000 for the next three years, while £315,900 will be used to offset capital and interest repayments on an existing loan.
Sally Cordwell, CEO of Aerospace Bristol, said:
“Everyone at Aerospace Bristol is delighted and enormously grateful for this fantastic show of support from South Gloucestershire Council.
After a challenging few years of covid recovery and tackling rising costs, we are starting to see the benefit of positive changes we have made, including a packed programme of events, temporary exhibitions and activities planned for the year ahead.
This vote of confidence from South Gloucestershire Council is a real boost for everyone at the museum who has worked so hard, and all of Aerospace Bristol’s supporters, as we look ahead with a shared optimism and real excitement for the future.”
Councillor Erica Williams, cabinet member with responsibility for schools at South Gloucestershire Council, said:
“South Gloucestershire Council is a longstanding, committed partner and supporter of Bristol Aero Collection Trust (BACT). The museum showcases the region’s aeronautical heritage and provides thousands of local school children and families, as well as visitors from the UK and overseas, the opportunity to see, touch and feel part of our history.
“The Council has been pleased to facilitate many school visits for local children in recent years and has recommitted to doing so for next year to enable school children to explore this part of our shared history. An important part of the museum’s focus is on promoting STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) to young people. The museum helps to excite children who visit to think about these subjects as they consider options for their education and future employment.”
Aerospace Bristol is situated on the historic Filton Airfield and is home to the last Concorde ever to fly. The museum tells the amazing stories behind Bristol’s aerospace achievements, and the local people who made them happen.
As an independent museum that receives no central government funding, Aerospace Bristol is operated by registered charity Bristol Aero Collection Trust, which aims to inspire young people through its exhibitions, STEM and local history school workshops, special events and activities.
The museum recently celebrated its fifth birthday with the announcement of its Engineering Futures appeal, which aims to raise £500,000 to help inspire the engineers of the future.