Poole Museum goes on tour during renovation work

A life-size model of a cod skeleton will be part of the travelling exhibition

A museum is going "on tour" while renovations are carried out to its listed historic buildings.

Poole Museum closed at the end of December for redevelopment work and so new maritime galleries can be built to showcase its collections.

Exhibits will be taken "on the road" to schools, libraries and community groups.

Manager Rebecca Rossiter said they also hoped to visit some large-scale events and family festivals.

The £7.7m renovation, funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England, will keep the museum closed until the end of 2024.

The recreation of the merman sculpture, a male version of the mermaid, came from the Swash Channel Wreck

"Museum on the Move will give local residents a taste of what's to come in our new galleries and let people know about the museum on their doorstep," Ms Rossiter said.

Students from local universities have also been helping to create replicas of museum objects and handling models to be used during the tour.

Three new galleries are being built to showcase the museum's maritime collections, a new space will allow major touring exhibitions to visit and a larger lift will be installed, the museum said.

Its three historic buildings, Grade II listed Oakley's Mill, and the Grade I listed medieval Wool Hall and Scaplen's Court, will also be restored and conserved while urgent repairs and maintenance are carried out.

Dorset Museum, which closed for two years in 2018 while it underwent major work, took many of its artefacts out on the road during a "pop-up" tour.