Approval has been granted for a £56.7 million transformation of Paisley's museum in Renfrewshire.

Plans to redevelop the town's museum were given the green light by councillors on 18 November.

The scheme is part of Paisley's bid to be the UK City of Culture in 2021.

Features of the project include:

• £15m towards the museum revamp, with an application for a further £15m to be submitted to the Heritage Lottery Fund.

• A two-year sponsorship deal with St Mirren which will see the local football club change the name of their stadium to support the bid.

• £3.7m to fund the fit-out of a publicly-accessible museum store in a vacant unit on the town's High Street.


• A £500,000 culture, heritage and event fund to support the local creative community and expand the town's cultural potential.

• £2.7m earmarked from existing resources to support the potential development of a new library in the town centre.

In addition, an extension would be built into the hillside beside the museum building, with experts predicting the project would increase visitor numbers and generate £89m for the local economy.

Council Leader Mark Macmillan said: "This is a hugely significant day for Paisley and Renfrewshire – the measures approved by councillors will take the ongoing rebirth of Paisley town centre to an entirely new level.

"Through careful management of our own resources, the council has been able to set aside funds which will go a long way towards transforming the town into a thriving destination for heritage and cultural tourism and business.

"Of course the museum project doesn't depend on winning UK City of Culture 2021 – we will deliver on our regeneration plans if we win or not, albeit the title would turbocharge that process."

(LM)