Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Weathering the storm: Scottish Fisheries Museum kept afloat thanks to cash boost

Directors of the museum, Ian Goodyear and Simon Hayhow



(c) Wullie Marr Photography
Directors of the museum, Ian Goodyear and Simon Hayhow (c) Wullie Marr Photography

A Fife-based national museum dedicated to telling the story of Scotland’s fishing industry has been given a helping hand to stay afloat.

There have been concerns the Scottish Fisheries Museum in Anstruther would have to close for good due to Covid-19 restrictions and a sharp fall in visitors numbers throughout 2020.

Despite being shut for almost half a year, however, the museum will be able to weather the storm.

The museum has been awarded £124,000 from the £4 million pot being distributed by Museum Galleries Scotland to help such venues across Scotland. The money was part of the wider £97 million given to the Scottish Government to support the cultural sector.

The cash will need to be used for specified projects, such as building repairs, marketing for next season and essential staffing and Karen Seath, chair of the Scottish Fisheries Museum’s board of trustees said it has been a timely boost.

”It has been a very challenging year for the museum, its staff and volunteers, with closure for five months and restricted opening from August.

“These are unprecedented times and have impacted visitor numbers drastically.

“We are absolutely delighted and very grateful to receive further support from Museum Galleries Scotland.

“This will allow the museum to move forward out of the Covid-19 restriction period and help us develop and deliver our recovery programme for 2021.

“The award from the fund will go towards vital work in supporting the longevity of the Scottish Fisheries Museum, progressing projects to secure our future as a national Scottish visitor attraction, and in preserving the history and documenting the future of the Scottish fishing industry.

“The trustees and I are incredibly proud of the museum staff and volunteers for their continued hard work and enthusiasm. This award is a very welcome boost to all.”

The museum is probably best known for its largest sea-going vessel the Reaper, a herring drifter which was first registered in 1902 and went on to hold the record catch of herring in Shetland in the late 1930s.

Just over six years ago the museum took formal steps to look into the Reaper’s long-term preservation and masterminded a complete refit of its hull between October 2017 and July 2019.

Directors of the museum, Ian Goodyear and Simon Hayhow, aboard The Reaper.<br />(c) Wullie Marr Photography

Work is ongoing and it remains one of the museum’s most sought-after attractions.

Lucy Casot, chief executive of Museum Galleries Scotland, said: “As with many museums and galleries, the Scottish Fisheries Museum has faced severe difficulties caused by the pandemic.

“They quickly and innovatively responded to these challenges through expanding their online offering to continue events and activities within their community and to welcome visitors to digitally explore Scotland’s fishing heritage.”