A REVITALISED Allerford Rural Life Museum will reopen later this month in time for the schools Easter holiday period.

Volunteers have spent the winter hard at work, breathing new life into every corner of the much-cherished museum.

Now, the museum, which is a charitable entity, is set to open for the new season on March 26, operating from Tuesday to Thursday each week until the end of October.

Visitors are invited to experience the transformed space, brimming with history, culture, and a heavy dose of community spirit.

The museum tells the story of rural life and families in the surrounding villages of West Somerset with a focus on the Holnicote Estate and the Acland family.

It has bustled with activity while it has been closed to the public as the team has been refreshing displays, painting walls, and reimagining the shop into a vibrant space showcasing a diverse array of Exmoor-made treasures and unique gifts.

The Victorian schoolroom, a much-loved part of the museum, has undergone a rejuvenation, and is now gleaming with freshly-laundered and neatly ironed dressing-up clothes awaiting exploration by modern day school groups.

Selworthy and Minehead Without Parish Council has been thanked for a valuable contribution to the work, which enabled the museum to take a significant step in its environmental, social, and governance journey.

With the council’s support, the museum team has upgraded the lighting system and replaced outdated fixtures with energy-efficient LED lighting, aligned with sustainable practices and reduced their environmental footprint.

The museum is still looking for more volunteers who have two or three hours a week to spare to help tell its story and shape its future, and is inviting anybody interested to ‘just drop in and say hello’.

More information is available from Ann Lund by emailing [email protected] or calling 01643 862529.