Hastings Museum & Art Gallery receives funding for the Wild Escape

Hastings Museum & Art Gallery has been awarded £2,470 in funding to help local school children explore wildlife through the museum's natural history collection.

Local primary schools and home educating families will be invited to take part in the project, where young people will be able find their favourite animal in the museum and create an art piece that imagines the creature's journey to a future habitat rich in biodiversity. These creations will be brought together in a collective work of art, which will be unveiled online and in museums on Earth Day on 22 April 2023.

The funding has come through Wild Escape, a national Art Fund project which aims to connect school children with nature and local wildlife through natural history collections in museums. The Wild Escape is made possible by lead support from Arts Council England's National Lottery Project Grants, with additional support from Art Fund.

Cllr Andy Batsford, lead councillor at Hastings Borough Council for Culture, said:

"This funding is great news for the museum as it enables us to showcase the fantastic local wildlife in our collections, our outdoor spaces and promote the importance of caring for the environment to schools and home educating families.

"Alongside the planned art project which aims to teach those involved about the local environment and the importance of biodiversity to our planet, there will be a special workshop on Earth Day."