A proposed ‘new’ museum? Why? Where? Who? and How? An insight into what we already know.

Last week, we launched a crowdfunding campaign intended to help us develop a feasibility study for a new museum dedicated to the outstanding geology, palaeontology and geomorphology of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site.

This week, we delve deeper into why this project has become an important priority for us and what else we will be doing to make this new museum a reality.
 

A delicate brittlestar fossil from the Jurassic Period that was collected and carefully prepared by David Sole. © David Sole

Another fossil museum?

Firstly, this is not just another museum. Our vision is for a centre that explores all aspects of the Dorset and East Devon World Heritage Site - a place for exhibitions, research, conservation and community engagement.
 

It isn’t really a new idea either. From the earliest days of the Jurassic Coast achieving World Heritage status in 2001, the aspiration to create a centre or museum about and for the World Heritage Site has been written into Site management plans. It’s there in the latest one too, endorsed by UNESCO, UK Government, Local Authorities and multiple partners including visitor centres and museums across the Site.

Why now?

The key driver pushing this aspiration to the top of our list of priorities is the need to protect important fossils from the World Heritage Site.

The Jurassic Coast Collection has been operating for three years now and it is through this programme that the concept and purpose of a new museum have really taken shape.

Led by Dr Chris Reedman, palaeontologist for the Jurassic Coast Trust, and funded by the John Ellerman Foundation, the Jurassic Coast Collection seeks to improve access to and engagement with fossils from the Site, support the management and sustainability of public collections, and address the long-term security of privately owned specimens.

To achieve these outcomes, we have been busy this year creating new fossil-focused exhibitions in partnership with Lulworth Cove Visitor Centre, Sidmouth Museum and Bristol University. We also ran a “citizen science” microfossil activity over the summer holiday to raise the profile of palaeontology among visitors to the Site. Chris has been working with various local museums to support them with volunteer training and in making the most of their fossil collections. This is ongoing work for the Jurassic Coast Trust and part of our remit to support our partners.

The long-term security of privately owned fossil collections is what the new museum seeks to help address. There are thousands of amazing specimens out there in private ownership, many of them safeguarded by their owners in the hope that a dedicated Jurassic Coast museum will be built one day. It is essential that they are secured in perpetuity for the benefit of local communities and the progression of scientific research.

Looking east from Thorncombe Beacon on the Jurassic Coast. © Rebecca Johnson

We are still in the early stages of shaping the proposal for a new museum, but this really will be a once in a lifetime project so, for now, we are not holding back on the scale of our ambition.

Who is involved?

Importantly, our aim is that this new facility will not take anything away from the local museums and visitor centres that already successfully do so much to help celebrate the Jurassic Coast and safeguard their own fossil collections. On the contrary, our aspiration is that it will create new resources to support this wider network. Local museums were key partners in the first steps of the Jurassic Coast Collection programme and they are at the heart of our aspiration to create a new museum dedicated to the World Heritage Site.

A working group for the Jurassic Coast Collection programme includes representation from local museums, national museums, fossil collectors and academic researchers. This group has been instrumental in providing valuable guidance to date and will continue in this role as the new museum proposal develops.

As we progress towards a final feasibility study and museum masterplan, we will be consulting more widely, particularly with Jurassic Coast communities. Our hope is to arrive at a truly shared vision for a project that could transform how people engage with the World Heritage Site and how we will all look after it for generations to come.

Where will it be built?

Spoilers! But, seriously, we don’t know yet. This is a key question that the feasibility study will help answer. A careful examination of transport links, demographics, economic factors, land availability and the ambitions of stakeholder groups is required before a build site can be proposed.

Seaton Jurassic, which sadly closed due to the pressures caused by the pandemic, has already been allocated to a new service provider. Whilst we don’t necessarily want to disregard any opportunities like this to acquire an existing building, should they arise, the nature of this project means our priority is to work with our partners and stakeholders to get the development plan right first so we know that we are committing our resources wisely.

What’s next?

The two major elements of developing the museum proposal are the feasibility study and the creation of a draft museum masterplan. The feasibility study will focus on identifying a potential site, business model and funding sources. The museum masterplan will be the basis for how the museum will function, including collections management, content, interpretation, access and inclusion, learning, engagement, desired outcomes and organisational resilience.

We are in the process of finalising a detailed timetable for all of the various tasks ahead of us. Fundraising will be essential in order to make progress.

Our immediate next steps will be to:

- invite external consultants to tender for parts of the feasibility study. This will go live before Christmas.
- begin consultation on the vision and draft outcomes for the proposed museum. Stay tuned for opportunities to get involved.
- share further announcements about our fundraising targets and upcoming benefit events.

If you want to be kept up to date with how the work is progressing, please sign up to our mailing list. If you wish to contribute towards our fundraising targets, please visit a new jurassic coast museum. If you have any questions, please contact us .