Petition to save museum nears 2,000 signatures

A petition launched to save the Walsall Leather Museum has surpassed 1,900 signatures

A petition launched to keep the Walsall Leather Museum at its current location has now surpassed 1,900 signatures.

The petition, which gained over 1,000 signatures in five days, is in response to Walsall Council's decision to dispose of the Leather Museum building to Walsall College.

The college plans to move special educational needs work from its Hawbush campus to the current museum building at Littleton Street West.

Taxpayers' money to make the former Victorian factory disability-friendly has already been allocated from the government's Community Regeneration Partnership funding pot.

The council plans to store the contents of the Leather Museum until a suitable town centre location is found for a "new and improved" museum.

The petition calls for an immediate pause on the current plans until a full and transparent consultation is held, as well as the publication of timelines, reasoning, and reports to explain the decision.

It's the second petition launched over the matter, with more than 6,000 people signing the first.

Lead petitioner Lauren Broxton, a leather fashion designer from Walsall, said it was crucial that people living in the borough signed the petition and reached the threshold for it to be heard at a public meeting.

She said: "We understand the frustrations that many in the borough have faced for years, especially in the face of important decisions being taken by council without properly consulting and engaging residents who will ultimately be affected most by these decisions.

"The handling of Walsall Leather Museum is in fact not unique, rather, it represents a culture and a pattern by those within leadership who do not follow their own processes and neglect the wishes of those they are elected to serve.

"Enough is enough. Walsall's residents and communities deserve better."

Committed to relocating

A spokesperson for Walsall Council said: "We are not closing Walsall Leather Museum.

"We are committed to relocating it to a central location within the town and we are liaising with many stakeholders about how the museum can become more viable in the long term.

"There is a need to increase footfall and improve its offer, so it provides value for money and better represents the history and heritage of our borough.

It said children were at the heart of everything the authority does, and the move would provide "much needed support for local special educational needs and disabilities students at Walsall College."

"We understand that some residents may have concerns about the relocation, but we would like to reassure them that their museum will continue to be an important part of Walsall borough in the future."