Dear Supporter
our development partners, Linden Homes Western, have commenced groundworks for the building shell of the Brunel Institute. Meanwhile, staff at the Trust are refining the education programmes, making the library collection ready for use, and sifting through the papers, letters, drawings, notebooks and artefacts that will become part of the ‘National Brunel Archive’.
The Brunel Institute aims to bring disparate artefacts and archives relating to Brunel together in one place, creating a critical mass of uniquely inspiring, accessible resources for people of all ages and interests. This new, national resource will be achieved through partnerships with the present custodians of the archive materials. The Trust is keen to ensure that these partnerships are established before the Brunel Institute opens to the public in 2010. We are working with the University of Bristol as the primary partner with its important archive of Brunel’s diaries, letters, notebooks and other documents plus Brunel’s drawings, his drawing instruments and other ephemera. The Trust is also developing a relationship with Bristol City Museums and Art Gallery which holds a small but important collection, and with the Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust, which has a fine group of original sketches and drawings of the bridge.
Once amassed, the National Brunel Archive at the Brunel Institute will be the most comprehensive archive of materials relating to Isambard Kingdom Brunel in the world, as well as being one of the most publicly accessible maritime archives. The archive will meet the highest possible national standards for safe storage and access and we plan to use staff and volunteers to make the resource fully accessible to the public, free of charge.
The work required to amass the Archive, and create the physical space to care properly for the valuable materials will cost £320,000. We need your help to raise the initial £15,000. This will be used as matched funding required by the Heritage Lottery Fund so it can release three times that amount from the grant awarded to the Trust in March this year. We are approaching charitable trusts, companies and other major benefactors for the remainder.
We are at a crucial time in negotiating terms of long-term loans from custodians of other Brunel collections and it is important that we can demonstrate our ability to invest in what will be one of the most important archives in the world.
It is important that we meet the appeal target by 29th August, so that we are able to commission the design and build of this specialised facility.
The ss Great Britain Trust is a charity and independent museum that receives no central or local government funding and relies on the generosity of its members and supporters. Please help and make a gift today.
Your extremely generous support in the past has enabled the Trust to complete a number of projects that without your support would probably not have happened.
The Trust would like to invite those who are able to donate £50 or more to a ‘behind the scenes’ event, where you will be able to view and find out more about the archive collection, and hear a presentation that will be led by the Brunel Institute’s Project Manager, Ruth Sidgwick, on the importance of archiving and what it means to the Trust to have the National Brunel Archive at Brunel’s ss Great Britain. The event will be held on Thursday 18th September 2008, and further details will be sent to you nearer the time.
Support at all levels is very much appreciated, and will go a long way in creating, protecting and making these important collections available for all to use, so you and others may enjoy and learn from it.
Thank you once again for all your support to date.
Yours sincerely
Yours sincerely
Matthew Tanner MBE
Director, ss Great Britain Trust
P.S. Every donation, large or small, really does make a difference to the ship’s future. If we are fortunate enough to raise more than the target, we will ensure that any additional funds go to the ongoing conservation work at Brunel's ss Great Britain.
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