A LEYLAND museum struggling to make ends meet has been handed a cash boost of nearly £100,000.

The British Commercial Vehicle Museum, which houses nearly 100 vehicles dating from the 1890s to the present day, plans to spend the Lotto cash on preserving its extensive collection of more than 500,000 magazines, photographs, glass plate negatives and plans of vehicles dating back years.

Bill Robinson, secretary of the museum in King Street, which opened more than 20 years ago, said the £96,500 award was a welcome boost for the museum, the only one of its kind in the country.

He said: "I am absolutely delighted that we were lucky enough to be chosen. We do struggle to make ends meet and the money can be put to good use."

"We want to make sure the preservation process is started quickly because we do not want things to start deteriorating.

"Some of the materials have been in boxes for a long time."

"To some people it may seem like a lot of money, but the project will take a lot of work. We want to preserve it for the general public so they can enjoy visiting the museum for years to come."

Now the visitor attraction plans to take on an archivist to tackle the mammoth task over a period of nearly three years before putting the exhibits on show for the public.

It is hoped the finished result will help the museum's reputation as a site which provides a window to Britain's commercial transport past including Leyland's historic links.

Mr Robinson said: "It all serves as a social history for the north west and we have some brilliant pictures including ones from the Leyland Motors annual trip to Blackpool.

"Once the new items are added it will make the display even better."