The historic Eskdale Mill in the village of Boot is ready to open its doors once again to visitors for the first time since March. The Mill Manager, Kate Hughes, and her band of volunteers have been working hard behind the scenes to prepare for a safe re-opening to the public.
Thanks to ongoing funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, Eskdale Mill & Heritage Trust has been able to put measures in place for a first phase of re-opening. These include moving the reception, adapting interactive exhibitions, introducing a one way system, implementing a new online booking system and of course regular cleaning. As a result, the mill has received “Good to Go” recognition from Visit England. At first, open days will be limited to Wednesdays and Sundays until further notice.
The Trust has recently heard that it has been successful in gaining a small grant from the National Lottery’s Heritage Emergency Fund, which will allow them to move onto a second phase of re-opening in the coming months, working toward opening six days a week as soon as possible
The mill and surrounding buildings are Grade 2* listed, so the adaptations have had to be sensitively carried out to ensure that the fabric of the buildings weren’t altered. This has created a challenge for the team but has meant that the changes are in-keeping with the quirky environment of this 16th century building.
The Trust has just pledged to the ‘Kids in Museums’ manifesto making them a family friendly visitor centre promising quality time and fun activities for all to do. The exhibition features working milling machinery driven by restored water wheels, interactive displays, an inspiring hydro-electric wheel and woodland grounds with cascades and picnic areas.
Eskdale Mill now offers staggered visitor entry via an online booking system. Make sure you pre-book before arriving and check eskdalemill.co.uk/visit for availability.
Kate commented “Finally after all these months, we’re really excited to announce that we can re-open again. We’ve kept our waterwheels and machinery turning, kept our grounds maintained during the closure and after lots of hard work, we’re ready to welcome our lovely visitors and supporters back to one of Copeland’s historical gems. I’m so looking forward to seeing everyone back here again and helping people discover what a great place Eskdale Mill is to spend time in.”
For more information or if you’re interested in volunteering, contact Kate Hughes on 019467 23335 or email [email protected]
