22 March 2012
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Plans for a new home for the British Postal Museum & Archive (BPMA) have been announced by the Royal Mail Group, BMPA and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. ...
The BPMA is to move to a new centre at Calthorpe House at Mount Pleasant, London, where the country's oldest mail centre is located. The new site is close to the home of the present BMPA site, at Freeling House, which has limited space for exhibitions and displays.
Royal Mail Group is to grant a 999-year lease on the property and agreements have been signed with Royal Mail and Post Office Ltd for a £6 million long term, low interest loan to fund the conversion of Calthorpe House to meet the basic needs of the organisation. In addition, Royal Mail and POL are providing other support, including a £500,000 grant. The BPMA will also launch a fundraising campaign to raise the remaining funds needed to create and launch the museum.
Dr Adrian Steel, Director of the BPMA, said: 'We are aiming to create a state-of-the-art, sustainable home for a unique part of our national heritage. The new centre will showcase the UK's pioneering role in developing postal communications, which has shaped the world we live in.'
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