THE cultural heart of Malmesbury is entering an exciting new phase.

Athelstan Museum has secured the purchase of a disused church across the road from its site to expand, thanks to donations from the community.

The museum raised more than £100,000 in pledges to buy the church last year but were outbid by developers.

But the Friends of Athelstan Museum – the group behind the fundraising – has since been gathering donations and was able to buy the museum from the developers, meaning it can finally increase capacity and offer even more to the community.

One hope for the expansion is that more schools will be able to attend the museum on trips, so the money raised will go towards educating the next generation about history – and what better thing is there to invest in?

The amount of money that has been raised is truly a testament to the Athelstan Museum team’s hard work and shows how valued they are in the town.

The museum was on the brink not long ago, so to see it now going from strength to strength is truly inspiring and let’s hope that visitor numbers soar.

Malmesbury may have lost the BBC History Weekend, an event it has enjoyed hosting for several years, but this expansion will surely solidify the town as a historical hub for north Wiltshire.

We wish the Athelstan Museum team well with their new venture.