THE new Fusiliers Museum Project - now on site at the Arts and Crafts Centre in Broad Street Bury and set to open in spring of 2009- has just received some great grant news from AGMA.

This stands for the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities, an organisation which represents all of the authorities which once formed Greater Manchester, who now work together on a number of initiatives and provide grants for projects which serve all of the authorities through their Grants Unit.

AGMA have supported the museum project for 3 years already, providing £10,000 each year towards the costs of a support officer for the project. This has enabled work to take place on improving collections management, on developing learning programmes and most recently on documentation of the museum's collection.

"It is a testament to how highly the project is regarded and the quality of the work we have carried out so far that AGMA have seen fit to make us a fourth and final grant of £10,000," said director Edmund Gartside on hearing the news.

Helen Castle, who has worked for almost a year now on improving documentation and who is a very effective staff member who is immensely popular with the volunteers, will be asked to stay on in the new role of relocation manager.

Helen is delighted to be able to continue her work which will now gradually move from documenting the collection to preparing it for re-display and packing it up for its removal.

The museum project team are now tasked with finding the other half of the costs associated with the new post -but a grant of £10,000 is a fantastic help and every success spurs the fundraising team on to doggedly pursue the outstanding funds needed to complete the project.

Please don't forget that we still need Bury Times readers to support our Brick Sponsorship scheme - which is a vital element of the final fund raising push! The money raised will provide stack-bonded red bricks for the wall of the museum which faces on to Sparrow Park. If you haven't already bought some, please clip out the coupon from the Bury Times or visit our stand in the Mill Gate Shopping Centre.

Every brick sponsor is issued with a certificate and a name and message will be preserved forever in the museum.

Learn more about this and the museum project or make a donation on our website www.fusiliersmuseum-lancashire.org.uk. For any other information call 0161 764 2208.