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The Harris Announces New Reopening Date
in Spring 2025

 

Image of people sat on plush blue seating and interacting with The Harris collections in large display cases.
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New Space Celebrating Diversity and Identity

 

Image of the Harris Ground Floor Rotunda with a variety of people exploring the new space. surrounding the Harris Pendulum

We’re creating a better Harris for everyone!

See our Latest Updates

Harris exterior building and the flag market below

Project background

For 130 years, the Harris has been both a cherished space for communities to come together and a home for world-class culture, exhibitions and collections. Each year, Preston’s Harris Museum, Art Gallery & Library welcomes and inspires more than one thousand people a day from every walk of life. It’s a landmark, drawing visitors to Preston from far and wide.

Harris Your Place is a £16million project set to restore and reimagine the Harris for 21st-century audiences as a community, cultural and learning space. Made possible thanks to our supporters.

Harris Your Place: New Spaces

The Harris balcont mock-up with interactive displays and children and families exploring the space

Harris Your Place – Second Floor Balcony, Decolonising the Collection

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Harris Your Place First Look: No. 9

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Rendered planning image of the Harris’ new Adult Library space, featuring black bookcases with an array of colourful books with artwork incorporated between the shelves. The themes ‘Adult Fiction’ and ‘Crime’ can be seen on the ends of the bookcases.

Harris Your Place First Look: The Library

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Image of the Harris Ground Floor Rotunda with a variety of people exploring the new space. surrounding the Harris Pendulum

Harris Your Place First Look: Rotunda

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Image of a wedding room dressed space.

Harris Your Place First Look: Wedding Room

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Image of the community exploring a space creatively.

Harris Your Place First Look: The Studio

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Harris Your Place First Look: First Floor Balcony

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Image of a meeting room dressed space.

Harris Your Place First Look: Meeting Room

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Rendered image of the new Harris Family Library with kids and parents interacting with the space.

Harris Your Place First Look: Family Library

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You’ve told us what the Harris means to you…

Preston’s hidden collections on show, new spaces to enjoy, family-friendly areas and more accessible facilities.

Rendered planning image of the Harris’ new Adult Library space, featuring black bookcases with an array of colourful books with artwork incorporated between the shelves. The themes ‘Adult Fiction’ and ‘Crime’ can be seen on the ends of the bookcases.

A Blended Museum, Art Gallery and Library:

More prosperous: Attracting more visitors (an extra 100,000, we expect) with an even better café, shop and events spaces. These additional tourists will also mean more business for other shops and services in Preston, helping to grow our city’s economy.

More inclusive: With new spaces for creativity, playing, learning, socialising and volunteering, including new, dedicated areas for young people. We’ll also work together with local communities to make sure the Harris tells the story of Preston’s diverse history and culture, so the Harris is a place local people can see themselves and have their voice heard.

Harris Your Place: Q&As

A person wearing a hard hat and protective clothing stands in an office.

Harris Your Place Q&A Series: Ian from Conlon Construction

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A person wearing overalls, hard hat and high vis stands in front of a freshly painted wall.

Harris Your Place Q&A Series: Nigel, Painter and Decorator

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A person wearing a face covering stands in front of The Harris.

Harris Your Place Q&A Series: Steven Mifsud MBE, Direct Access CEO

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A person wearing protective construction gear stood in front of a containment wall

Harris Your Place Q&A Series: Ray from Red Rose Drylining

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A person wearing a white shirt and beige trousers stands in front of The Harris on a sunny day.

Harris Your Place Q&A Series: Neal from Buttress

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A person in a grey fleece sits at a table.

Harris Your Place Q&A Series: Keith from James Mercer Group

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Q&A With Mike at Click Netherfield

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A person wearing a hard hat and high vis jacket stood in front of the Harris building.

Harris Your Place Q&A Series: Aimee from Conlon Construction

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Harris Your Place: Project Updates

The Foucault Pendulum experiment on the ground floor at the Harris cafe.

Harris Your Place: Foucault’s Pendulum

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Image of a large yellow crane above The Harris building

Crane Operation Marks Major Milestone in The Harris Your Place Project

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Scaffolding covering the façade of the Harris building.

Harris Your Place Update: Sustainability and Reopening

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Image of four people in hi-vis and branded helmets.

Harris Your Place: Newly Appointed Contractors

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A close-up shot of the Harris ceremonial key.

Harris Your Place: The Harris Keys are Handed to Conlon Construction

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Outside Harris building with autumn tree in foreground.

Conlon Construction Ltd is the Re-imagining the Harris Project preferred construction partner

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Harris Your Place is about more than simply preserving this much-loved building – as our way of life changes ever more quickly, we need to ensure the Harris remains a vibrant heart of the community, where people want to spend their time.

Harris Your Place has been made possible with support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund; Towns Fund; Preston City Council; Lancashire County Council; the Preston, South Ribble and Lancashire City Deal; DCMS; Arts Council England, and public donations via the Friends of the Harris.

Other key supporters include the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan), Garfield Weston Foundation, The Wolfson Foundation, the Harris Free Public Library and Museum Endowment Trust (est. 1893), and The Harris Charity (est.1985).

We will re-open our magnificent Grade I Listed building in 2025 and are already working with Community Partners to deliver a programme of events and activities throughout closure and from day one of re-opening. Your support can help deliver this exciting programme alongside Harris Your Place.

Read More About Our Supporters 

Harris Your Place: Progress Pictures

Image from the rotunda in the Harris
Image taken of the inside of the Harris
Image taken of the inside of the Harris
Image taken of the inside of the Harris
Image taken of the inside of the Harris
Image taken of the inside of the Harris
Stonework cleaning image
Stonework cleaning image
Stonework cleaning image
Image of scaffolding inside the Harris building
Image of scaffolding inside the Harris building
Image of scaffolding inside the Harris building
Image of the first floor of the Harris with Tyvek bags draped over the balcony
Image of a bare wall and staircases of the Harris
A close up of the gold lettering under the pediment.
A close up of the gold lettering under the pediment.
An image of the pediment with scaffolding.
An image of the pediment with scaffolding.
An image of detailing on the pediment.
An image of sculptures behind scaffolding,
An image of engraved text on the pediment.
An image of sculptures behind scaffolding.
An image of sculptures.
An image of sculptures.
An image of a stairway and bannister covered in bubble wrap.
An image of internal scaffolding.
A close up of the gold lettering under the pediment.
Image of The Harris roof with a pyramid glass roof.
Image of The Harris roof with a pyramid glass roof.
Image taken from the second floor balcony of The Harris.
Image taken from the Egyptian Balcony of The Harris.
Image of silver roof gantries on The Harris roof.
Image of The Harris roof lantern with Greek inscriptions emblazoned onto the sides.
Image of a room in The Harris with staircases and a glass roof.
Image taken from the second floor balcony of The Harris.
Image of a large white room with wooden floors.
Image of a section of the Ground Floor Rotunda featuring a white radiator and deep pink wall colour.
Image of staircases covered with protective sheets.
Image of a wooden door frame in The Harris.
Image of green tiles in the Changing Places toilet
Image of a white unfinished Changing Places toliet
Image of a glass celing
A large glass display case.
A large spiral bookcase.
A large spiral bookcase.
A large grey unit.
A wooden board featuring colourful pairs of shoes.
A stack of blue plastic books.

Harris Your Place: Project Partners

BECK

Conlon Construction

Restore Harrow Green

Buttress Architects

Ralph Appelbaum Associates

Click Netherfield

Focus Consultants

Ridge and Partners LLP

Direct Access

Museum and Art Gallery Collections Decant

'Pauline in the Yellow Dress' Decant

Textiles and Costume Decant

Paintings and Fine Art Decant

Books and Objects Decant

Alexander Frieze Decant

Collections Decant

Harris Your Place: Funding Updates

Harris exterior building and the flag market below

Lancashire County Council funding boost of £375,000 for the Harris Your Place Project

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Harris exterior building and the flag market below

The Harris to receive £803,249 in funding in another positive step forward for the Harris Your Place project

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£450,000 Boost for Harris Your Place

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We’ve been awarded £4.5m by The National Lottery Heritage Fund

#HarrisYourPlace awarded £4.5m by The National Lottery Heritage Fund

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Image of a collage taken at one of the initial school workshops which provided inspiration for “The Links of the Chain Are of Equal Strength”

“The links of the chain are of equal strength”

Close up of the “The links of the chain are of equal strength” mural
Image of a second ink drawing from the school workshops of textile historic machinery

Revisiting Preston’s Rich Textiles History

In collaboration with The Courtauld, a brand new hand-painted mural from local artist Gavin Renshaw decorates the front of the Harris Building during the Harris Your Place transformation.

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Artist Gavin Renshaw painting “The Links of the Chain Are of Equal Strength”