The National Museums Liverpool-owned Sudley House is to be awarded £187,000 for general improvements. © National Museums Liverpool.

Museums and Galleries in the North of England and the Midlands are set to receive a cash boost after the Arts Minister, Estelle Morris, announced a series of grants totalling £2 million.

Altogether 15 institutions are to be awarded the money to help them improve the quality of their displays, access for disabled visitors and environmental controls.

The funds have been allocated as part of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund for 2004/05.

"I am very grateful to the Wolfson Foundation for their continued support for our nation's museums and galleries," said Estelle Morris.

"This year, with a larger fund, their support will enable this programme to deliver wider benefits to an increased number of museums across the country."

Monkwearmouth Station Museum, Sunderland. Courtesy of Monkwearmouth Station Museum

Among the institutions to benefit is Monkwearmouth Station Museum in the North East, which is to be given £203,000 to refurbish five of its galleries, while Sudley House in Liverpool is getting £187,000.

Hull Museums and Art Gallery’s Wilberforce House Museum has been allocated £202,400 for improvements to its gallery display and access.

Over in York an award of £187,000 will be matched with £97,000 of York Museums Trust’s own funds to pay for an update of the Castle Museum’s recreated Victorian street, Kirkgate.

When it was built in 1938, Kirkgate was a ground-breaking display and has since provided inspiration for similar displays in museums across the country.

York Castle Museum's recreated Victorian street, Kirkgate, is now set to undergo a series of improvement works. © York Museums Trust.

The street was the idea of the founder of the museum, Dr John Kirk, a North Yorkshire doctor who wanted to create a museum of everyday life. He rescued original historic shop fronts and interiors and reconstructed them in the museum.

"The aim of this project is to combine the very best elements of this famous iconic display with modern ideas and technologies," said Martin Watts, Director of Lifelong Learning at York Museums Trust.

"We hope this project will put York Castle Museum once more at the forefront of museum interpretation; engaging, exciting, inspiring and informing new generations of visitors."

Improvements will include opening up the police station, cells and bank to let visitors explore inside, as well as converting existing behind-the-scenes rooms into period domestic rooms.

Access will also be improved by resurfacing the cobbled section of the street and information about the displays will be tailored to suit different age groups and tastes.

The site now occupied by Kirkgate was once a female prisoners' excercise yard. © York Museums Trust.

Work is expected to start in December and is scheduled for completion by August 2005.

The awards are part of a £4 million package put together by the DCMS working with the Wolfson Foundation and details concerning grants for other regions are set to be announced soon.

"Our museums and galleries are a key educational resource, which draw in visitors locally, nationally and internationally," added Estelle Morris.

"They support community cohesion, the economy and most importantly instill a sense of creativity in all who visit them. These grants will help museums and galleries, both large and small, across England to improve collection presentation and access, and by doing so, making them welcome to all."

The Wilberforce House Museum is housed in the birthplace of William Wilberforce, Hull MP and slavery abolishionist. Courtesy of Hull City Council Museum Service

The grant recipients in full:

West Midlands