Welsh museum given a reprieve but it could cost millions of pounds to bring it up to scratch

Long-term plans to modernise and reopen an industrial museum which "struggled with what it is or should be" have been approved by Carmarthenshire Council. Kidwelly Industrial Museum was open between 1988 to 2017 to preserve what a cabinet report described as Britain’s earliest tinplate works and "a unique survivor of Carmarthenshire's industrial heritage".

The tinplate works, north-east of Kidwelly, was a major local employer and operated between 1737 and 1941. The 13-acre museum site was leased to a trust in recent years and includes listed buildings and scheduled ancient monuments such as a 160-ft chimney, steam-powered hot and cold rolls, and natural habitat. Some buildings have been vandalised and the site has returned to local authority control since it closed.

Cabinet members were presented with four options at a meeting on Monday, November 4: disposal, mothball, reopen in its existing format, or restore, modernise what's on offer and reopen. While two of the first three options were considered viable, cabinet approved modernisation and reopening - the most expensive option. Buildings would be revamped, renewable energy generated onsite, acres of habitat opened up for visitors, and a new cafe and larger parking area provided. You can get more story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.

Initial reopening costs have been estimated at £4.2m, external funding would be crucial, and it could be up to nine years before the museum fully reopens. The report said: "The museum will explore the global impact of the tinplate industry, including imperial expansion, international technology and design flow, and Kidwelly’s role as an early pioneer of tinplate working in Wales."

Cabinet members agreed to fund a business feasibility study to explore their preferred option further, prior to the submission of a formal business plan. Council leader Darren Price described the plan as a long-term objective. "There is a duty to safeguard listed buildings onsite," he said. Cllr Hazel Evans, cabinet member for regeneration, leisure, culture and tourism, said the preferred option had the most opportunity of the four to generate income.

An options appraisal study commissioned by the council said the museum used to be focused on depicting working life in days gone before proposals to turn it into Wales's national tinplate museum. "When previously open the museum struggled with what it is or should be," said the study. It said even with free admission, the museum only attracted around 2,000 visitors per year in its later years.

The options appraisal envisaged guided tours of the buildings and adjacent habitats, demonstrations of heritage skills, firing up of restored engines from time to time, seasonal events, talks and presentations, and a farmers' market, among other things. An entry fee would apply. The appraisal added a new charity focused on education and research could team up with the council as part of a governance structure.

A property condition survey carried out in 2023 identified eight faults at the museum indicating risk of immediate failure, and 88 faults requiring major repair.

Speaking in August last year, Malcolm MacDonald, chairman of Kidwelly Industrial Museum Trust, which used to run the museum, said it had been reliant on volunteers, with funding over the years coming from the county council, Kidwelly Town Council and donations. Asked at the time if he would like the trust to have a role to play in the site's future, he said: "Yes, I think that is important."

The tinplate works through time

• Kidwelly tinplate works operated from 1737 to 1941 and was a major local employer
• The power source changed from water to steam in the 1860s, and a rail connection to Kidwelly was added in 1872
• The site was sold as storage in 1946 and remained as such until 1974 when it was bought that year by Llanelli Borough Council
• Conservation work got under way in 1980 and a group called the Kidwelly Heritage Trust was formed two years later
• A new industrial museum opened in 1984, operated by the trust in partnership with the borough council
• The Prince of Wales formally opened the museum in 1988 and various work continued to restore more of the site
• The museum closed in 2017 due to declining visitor numbers and safety issues, and the site gradually returned to the control of Carmarthenshire Council
• The council commissioned a property survey and options appraisal, with cabinet members deciding on a long-term upgrade and reopening of the site in November 2024