Motor museum plans new archive building

The British Motor Museum has applied for planning permission to build a new collections centre to house its extensive archive of documents, images and films.

If built, the new collections centre would allow greater public access to the archives of the British Motor Industry Heritage Trust and the Jaguar Heritage Trust.

The former is considered one of the finest archives of motor industry related material in the world, spanning back more than a century.

The museum has proposed building the new centre next door to its collections centre, which opened to the public in February 2016.

The new building, which would measure 77m long, would be built to echo the look of the existing collections centre, using the similar materials.

Planning permission has already be granted for the new centre, but the museum has submitted a new application as they now intend the building to house its archives, rather than as museum space.

The existing permission had been set to expire in December this year