St Fagans Castle will be closed for three months to begin essential roof repairs and conservation work, as part of a major investment by the Welsh Government into Amgueddfa Cymru's historic buildings.
The Grade I listed castle, one of the most significant historic buildings at St Fagans National Museum of History, will undergo roof refurbishment over the next two years, protecting the building's long-term future.
The castle closure forms part of £1.8 million the Welsh Government is providing this financial year for improvement works across the St Fagans site. This includes for restoration work on the museum's historic glasshouses, the only two remaining in the grounds from the late nineteenth century. This restoration is also supported by a significant grant from Colwinston Charitable Trust, along with a number of other contributors.
The St Fagans investment is part of a wider programme of additional support for Amgueddfa Cymru this financial year, totalling £11.5 million:
- St Fagans National Museum of History: around £1.8 million for castle restoration, glasshouse repairs and site improvements
- National Museum Cardiff: almost £3.5 million for priority building works, on top of £1.3million provided last year
- National Slate Museum: £3.3 million towards the ongoing redevelopment, bringing the total Welsh Government investment in the project to £5.8 million
- Welsh Government Energy Scheme: £1.5 million towards decarbonisation projects
- Storage and collections care: over £780,000 to help protect Wales' national collections
- Visitor experience improvements: over £706,000 for St Fagans and the National Waterfront Museum, to include an upgraded shop and more accessible toilet facilities.
This is on top of the £5 million capital funding Amgueddfa Cymru also receives as part of its annual grant funding. The Welsh Government is also working with Amgueddfa Cymru to carry out building condition surveys across the St Fagans site to inform future investment priorities.
Minister for Culture, Jack Sargeant, said:
St Fagans Castle is a treasured part of our national story, and this investment will ensure it can be enjoyed by visitors for generations to come. Once the work is complete, the hope is that the public will be able to explore some of the upstairs again.
This is about more than one building. We're investing nearly £11.5 million this financial year to care for our national museums, for essential works at National Museum Cardiff and the transformation of the National Slate Museum.
Our Priorities for Culture set out a clear ambition for Wales' collections and historic assets to be protected and used to support learning, creativity and wellbeing. This investment delivers on that commitment, ensuring our most loved heritage sites remain at the heart of communities across Wales.
St Fagans is Wales' most popular heritage attraction and ranks among the UK's top ten free attractions as voted by TripAdvisor users. The rest of the museum site, including its historic buildings, galleries and grounds, will remain open throughout the castle works.
Chief Executive of Amgueddfa Cymru, Jane Richardson said:
The works which are starting at St Fagans Castle this month will help to safeguard the building for the future and we are extremely grateful to the Welsh Government for their investment. I’m delighted that along with Colwinston Charitable Trust, Welsh Government are also supporting the restoration of our historic glasshouses at St Fagans.
It’s exciting to see so much work taking place to protect, conserve and develop our museums right across Wales, which will ultimately help us to widen access to the national collection for everyone.
