URGENT repairs to one of Colchester’s major cultural assets will be funded through a new cash grant worth close to £230,000, it has been announced.

The Museums Estate and Development Fund (MEND), which funds museums across the UK to carry out urgent maintenance backlogs, will award £228,850 to Colchester Museums.

A significant portion of the funding to go towards repairing Hollytrees Museum.

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Councillor Pam Cox, the council’s portfolio holder for culture and heritage, welcomed the support for the museum, which is Grade I listed but needs major repairs to its roof.

Water damage and access issues remain the key areas of the facility which need attention.

Now more than 300 years old, Hollytrees House to a former Colchester MP Charles Gray, who was also an attorney and justice of the peace.

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The Georgian townhouse was then converted into a museum in 1929, and now welcomes around 40,000 visitors each year.

Professor Cox said: “Colchester Museums would like to thank DCMS, Arts Council England, and Colchester City Council for their generous support of this project, as we continue to protect and preserve the beautiful and historically important Hollytrees Museum for future generations to enjoy.”