£10m puts ship back on course
THE BID to restore Greenwich's famous Cutty Sark has been boosted by a £10million lottery grant increase.
The Heritage Lottery Fund has handed over extra money to help the tea clipper recover from the fire that ravaged it last May.
A£11.75m grant was made in September 2006 to support the conservation project.
Restoration work on the 137-year-old vessel was suspended following the blaze, which raised the cost of the on-going project by £10m to £30m.
Carole Souter, director of the Heritage Lottery Fund, hailed the Cutty Sark as "an amazing testament to our maritime heritage".
She said: "This was an extremely difficult decision for the Heritage Lottery Fund to take due to huge pressures on our budget.
"However, we decided that in this particular instance we would make an exceptional decision to award additional funds to the Cutty Sark Trust so that they can go ahead and realise their vision for this magnificent ship."
Work can now re-start next month, but the trust is still looking for backers to provide the remaining funds.
Public donations topped £1.2million in the aftermath of the fire.
The trust will now look to fundraising events such as a reception at Buckingham Palace in March.
The restoration project is scheduled to finish in early 2010, just over half a year later than originally planned.
Once complete, the Cutty Sark will be raised to allow visitors to walk underneath, and the ship will also host functions, dinners and other events in a bid to balance the books more effectively.
The trust reported it has received backing from businesses in the area, but no "enormous" donations have appeared.
Curator Eric Kentley said: "We've got about £5m left to raise but without that funding the project would have been in serious jeopardy.
"We're planning to make the ship a much more interesting attraction, with a lot more to see.
"We're also looking to open it up for lunches and events to make the ship much more sustainable in future."
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