National Football Museum moving to Manchester

The National Football Museum is to move from Preston to Urbis in Manchester in 2011.

The trustees of the museum made the controversial decision today, after commissioning an independent report on the move last month. They hope that a museum can be maintained at Preston until 2012 and beyond, providing funding is secured.

Paul Dermody, Chairman of the National Football Museum said, ‘We are delighted that the partnership with Manchester City Council will ensure an exciting future for the Museum. We also hope that further discussions with Lancashire County Council, Preston City Council and the University of Central Lancashire will see this national treasure remain open in Preston into the future. Importantly, the museum’s future in the North West has been secured. We firmly believe this is a win-win situation’.

Councillor Ken Hudson, Leader of Preston City Council, responded, ‘We are bitterly disappointed that the trustees of the National Football Museum have decided, in effect, to move the football museum to Manchester. We put forward an excellent funding package that guaranteed the future of the museum in Preston. Now they are talking about having some sort of ‘publicly accessible’ museum in Preston until 2012 – as long as Preston taxpayers fund it. In other words they want us to baby sit the museum until they open a new one in Manchester. Together with Lancashire County Council and the University of Central Lancashire we will now consider our options.’

Tags: Lancashire County Council, Manchester Attractions, Manchester City Council, Millennium Quarter, National Football Museum, Preston Attractions, Preston City Council, Urbis