Dundee Museum of Transport’s exciting future at Maryfield Tram Depot is boosted by a £200,000 grant from the Wolfson Foundation and a £250,000 offer from The Northwood Charitable Trust.
The trustees and director of Dundee Museum of Transport are delighted to announce that the Museum has been awarded a grant of £200,000 from the Wolfson Foundation which will go towards the restoration of Maryfield Tram Depot, the Museum’s future home.
Dundee-based Northwood Charitable Trust has pledged £250,000 in addition to donations of £500,000.
As an independent charity with a focus on research and education, the Wolfson Foundation has awarded more than a billion pounds since its launch in 1955, benefiting more than 14,000 projects throughout the UK – including theatres, museums, schools and universities.
The grant and the pledge are both warmly welcomed by Dundee Museum of Transport which continues to build on its impressive fundraising achievements since it announced its intention to restore local landmark, Maryfield Tram Depot.
This much-loved Grade B-listed building is located in the heart of the Stobswell area, between Stobsmuir Park and Morgan Academy on the Forfar Road, and has been on the ‘Buildings at Risk’ register since the turn of the millennium.
To date, the Museum has raised more than £2.5 million to fund the renovation, including more than £1.65 million in 2024 alone. It hopes to raise at least £700,000 more this year which will enable a main contractor to be appointed in October, and restoration work to begin in spring 2025. The Museum is confident that continued fundraising efforts will deliver the funding needed to open at Maryfield Tram Depot for Easter 2026, as planned.
“Cultural projects on this scale do take time to build momentum and while the Museum has wanted to move for many years, the focus of a new team over the last two years has accelerated that momentum and we intend to continue in this way for the rest of the project,” says Dr. Paul Jennings, the Museum’s Executive Director. “The significant funds secured from national, regional and local funders during the last two years will enable us to commission construction work in the very near future, but our fundraising will continue until the whole project is complete.”
Paul Ramsbottom, Chief Executive of the Wolfson Foundation, said: “We are delighted to support Dundee Museum of Transport. This project will not only restore and preserve the Maryfield Tram Depot, but deliver a new permanent home for the Museum of Transport, allowing visitors to discover these wonderful collections and Dundee’s transport heritage.”
You can support Dundee Museum of Transport in a number of ways: by registering for the email newsletter; signing up to be a member; making a donation; volunteering at the museum; or visiting the museum at its current home at Market Mews.
