POOLE Museum has been awarded a share of nearly £500,000 to help it thrive as part of “Destination Wessex”.

The £473,703 comes from the Arts Council England’s museum resilience fund and will help the Borough of Poole museum become a more sustainable and resilient business, it says.

It will work in partnership with Bournemouth’s Russell-Cotes Museum and Art Gallery, Dorset County Museum, Wiltshire Museum and The Salisbury Museum to improve cultural heritage, tourism, exhibition and marketing services.

Poole will receive £77,000 to support fundraising and resilience, together with a share of £109,000 for marketing, cultural tourism and project management.

“This project is about further improving the value of Poole’s hugely popular museum service for residents and visitors and ensuring that it flourishes in the years to come,” said Michael Spender, Borough of Poole museum and arts manager.

Each museum will develop its own fundraising capability and Poole will establish a suitable fundraising body, staff training and will roll out a long-term membership and giving programme.

Cllr Xena Dion, Borough of Poole cabinet portfolio holder for a prosperous and sustainable Poole, said: “We are delighted that Arts Council England is supporting Poole Museum Service to become more resilient and to develop its fundraising capabilities and cultural tourism offer.

“It’s also great news that the Arts Council is significantly investing in this strategic partnership of museums in the Dorset and Wiltshire sub-region.”

Poole Museum Service is one of 15 museums across the south west to share £2.4m in the first round of funding. The total budget over the funding period of 2015-18 for round one is just over £17m.