Funding boost for Tavistock engineering heritage site
An Engineering Heritage and Restoration Centre in Tavistock, Devon, is set to benefit from a £47,988 grant from Biffa Award, a multi-million pound fund that helps to build communities and transform lives through awarding grants to community and environmental projects across the UK.
The development project at The Robey Trust Ltd, which was awarded funding under Biffa Award’s Cultural Facilities theme, will include the creation of an area dedicated specifically for the restoration, assembly and maintenance of large items of engineering heritage, such as stationary engines, as well as a hands-on training area for the development of engineering and other skills. The creation of a specialised space will also permit the demonstration of stationary engines in the collection.
The planned relocation of the restoration activities to a dedicated, secure location will not only create facilities where safety-critical operations can be carried out, with enhanced opportunities for education and training, but it will also allow the main auditorium at the Centre to be laid out for an enhanced visitor experience.
David A. Davies, Trustee and Board Member, The Robey Trust Ltd, said:
“This project puts the Robey Trust in the forefront of organisations restoring items of our engineering heritage in England.”
John Hatchek, Education Officer, The Robey Trust said:
“At last we will be able to fulfil our educational aims of furthering knowledge and teaching practical skills, from school children to those seeking to enhance their qualifications and employability.”
Cath Hare, Biffa Award Acting Programme Manager, said:
“The Robey Trust Ltd project will help to protect our cultural heritage by enabling skilled people not only to carry out vital restoration and maintenance work, but also to share and teach those skills for the benefit of future generations. The project will also engage visitors and we are pleased to support it.”
Since 1997, the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts (RSWT) has been awarding grants to environmental and community projects under the fund name Biffa Award. The fund administers money donated by Biffa Group Ltd, a leading integrated waste management business.
Under the Landfill Tax Regulations 1996, landfill operators like Biffa Group Ltd are liable for taxes on waste deposited in landfill sites. The Landfill Communities Fund allows them to donate a small percentage of their tax liability to projects working to improve communities living within the vicinity of landfill sites. To date, Biffa Award has awarded grants totalling more than £125 million to hundreds of worthwhile projects
