A MUSEUM which houses one of Britain's last working weaving-mill engines has been awarded £55,200 from the National Lottery's heritage fund.

Bancroft Mill Engine Trust, Barnoldswick, is one of only four north-west applicants to win in the latest round of lottery grants.

The trust maintains the engine at Bancroft, one of Lancashire's three surviving operational weaving mills. The fully working engine is the only one in the north to be powered by an original boiler and rope drive.

The money will help to fund the trust's on-going maintenance work which allows visitors to see an important part of the area's history.

A spokesman for the Heritage Lottery Fund said: "The grant will support continued use of the site as a museum by carrying out essential repairs to the mill chimney, boiler, engine and boiler houses.

"This support is opening up new opportunities for the enjoyment and preservation of our heritage."

The trust was set up in 1982 as a registered charity to look after the engine at Bancroft, the 13th and last weaving mill to be built in Barnoldswick.

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