New galleries and entrance for city's museum

Chris Binding
Local Democracy Reporting Service
LDRS The grey, multi-storey building of Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens.  Several palms are growing in front of it with a pond across a pedestrian area. The cupola glass building of the Winter Gardens can be seen in the distance. LDRS
Plans to transform the museum were revealed earlier this year

A museum's entrance could be moved and new galleries created if plans are approved.

Transformation proposals for Sunderland's Museum and Winter Gardens have been officially submitted, after they were revealed earlier this year.

The Grade II listed building will have more space when the city's library moves to the Culture House development on Keel Square in the autumn.

A decision on the redevelopment plans is expected later this year.

The museum was last refurbished more than 20 years ago, according to Local Democracy Reporting Service.

After the entrance is moved, the existing shop will become a learning hub called Growing Space, where visitors will be able to learn about the environment.

An exhibition space will be created next to the new entrance lobby, along with a relocated reception desk and museum shop.

Meanwhile, the city's pottery and glass collections will be moved into a new gallery on the third floor called The Hold.

Other new galleries include Window on Wearside, which will feature "vibrant displays of star objects" to enjoy Sunderland's story of sports and music.

The soon-to-be-vacated library space will become Sunderland Story, exploring the city's history through "mass displays" of early archaeology, ship models and mining lanterns.

Plans for the proposed first and second floors are described as "more limited" but include the creation of a new meeting space, according to planning documents submitted to the council.

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