Hollytrees Museum in Colchester could stop free entry

Colchester Council is considering charging visitors to Hollytrees Museum in Castle Park, which is currently free to enter.

Council documents reveal it could make the authority between £80,000 and £100,000 a year.

But the move to introduce an admission fee by April this year could slash visitor numbers in half from 40,000 to 20,000 a year.

Changes - the museum in Castle Park is currently free to visit (Image: Newsquest)

A pricing structure is yet to be set but the council has suggested entry for adults could cost £5 with family offers and joint ticket options for visitors also hoping to visit Colchester Castle potentially being considered.

The council says it is improving the museum by adding new signage, trails, and dress-up activities “to help improve the visitor offer”.

Councillors will review the plans at a meeting on Monday.

They will also discuss long-awaited plans to invest millions of pounds in improving another of the city’s museums.

According to council documents, the authority is planning to make a funding application to the National Lottery Heritage Fund later this year to kickstart a £5million redevelopment of the Natural History Museum.

The application to the National Lottery Heritage Fund is due to be submitted in May.

Museums could become a charity

These measures are in addition to a proposed move to make the two museums and nearby Colchester Castle a charitable trust to save the council more than £100,000.

Plans - Colchester Castle could become part of a charitable trust (Image: Colchester Council)

The move could see council-run museums spun off into their own entity.

The three sites are currently part of Colchester and Ipswich Museums, a joint venture between Colchester Council and Ipswich Council.

It’s been suggested the proposed move could save the council £120,000 in the 2025-26 financial year.

“It is not anticipated that the model of museum delivery will impact the service,” the council says.