Focus Consultants delighted by opening of restored First World War warship

Heritage and exhibition specialists at Focus Consultants are preparing for the opening of the Royal Navy’s only Gallipoli surviving craft following a major restoration of the First World War warship.

On 6^th August, The National Museum of the Royal Navy (NMRN) will open HMS M.33 to the public for the first time in her history, following a distinctive and extensive conservation project funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF).

Come the centenary of her launch, HMS M.33 will be the only First World War warship to allow visitors to walk her decks this year.

Nottingham-based Focus Consultants has been a part of the team involved in the £2.5 million ‘Commemorating Gallipoli – the HMS M.33 Project’, part of the NMRN’s wider ‘Great War At Sea 1914-1918’ programme to mark the Royal Navy’s First World War.

With the help of Focus as cost consultants, the restoration project secured almost £1.8 million from the HLF. Focus, which also has branches in London, Leicester, and in Boston and Aubourn in Lincolnshire, was also CDM (construction, design and management) coordinator for the scheme.

“This project has brought HMS M.33 back to life and will enable visitors to go aboard this historic warship for the first time and explore the stories of those who fought on board,” said Focus Associate Eleanor Clarke. “The team at Focus Consultants has been proud to have played a part in the restoration of such an important ship in time for the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign she took part in.”

HMS M.33 is positioned in No.1 Dry Dock at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, alongside HMS Victory and the Mary Rose Museum. Focus has been involved in a number of schemes in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. Working with Portsmouth Naval Base Property Trust and the International Boatbuilding Training College, the company is project manager and quantity surveyor on a development to restore and refurbish Boathouse 4 and create a new £5.5 million Boatbuilding and Heritage Skills Training Centre.

HMS M.33 is the only surviving Navy ship from the ill-fated Gallipoli campaign, and as such, holds great historic importance. This is despite the fact she was constructed and sent into service so speedily that she did not even warrant a name. Fabricated in just seven weeks she was one of nearly forty “monitors” built in a rapid construction campaign following the outbreak of First World War.

Sir Peter Luff, Chair of HLF, said: “The role played at Gallipoli by the Royal Navy and Monitor Class ships like M33 in protecting soldiers in the August 1915 landings is an incredible story of perseverance, endeavour and bravery. It has a personal meaning for me as my father and his two brothers served in Gallipoli. So I'm particularly grateful that, thanks to National Lottery players, M33 is now open in the campaign’s centenary year and people can experience first-hand the conditions in which the men aboard lived and fought.”

The NMRN commissioned Ian Clark Restoration to conserve the fabric of the ship.

HMS M.33 launches on 6^th August 2015 and welcomes its first visitors on 7^th August.

Focus specialises in creative approaches to securing funding packages and delivering high quality projects across the UK. Since its creation in 1994, Focus has helped to secure more than £953 million of grant assistance for a range of projects and businesses across the UK and delivered more than £1.1 billion of projects and programmes.

For more information visit www.focus-consultants.co.uk

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First World War project gains almost £1million grant with support from Focus Consultants

Funding experts at Focus Consultants have helped a council to secure almost £1million from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to uncover the local history of the First World War. 

The grant to Doncaster Council will also be used to research the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry (KOYLI) and create a lasting legacy which will be accessible to townspeople for years to come. 

Mike Lee, associate at Focus Consultants, which is based in Nottingham and has offices in London, Leicester, Boston and Aubourn in Lincolnshire, said: “We are pleased and proud to have played a part in helping Doncaster Council to secure this grant from the HLF by assisting with the bid. 

“As the centenary of the First World War is being marked this year, it is particularly poignant that the council and local people will be focusing on this period of the history of the area. The project will help to expand on what is already known and will create a rich resource for generations to come.” 

An earlier HLF grant had been awarded to the council to fund the work that Focus carried out on the bid. 

A five-year project entitled Doncaster 1914-1918 will be launched on Remembrance Weekend, November 9th and 10^th, and will include a range of activities and events aimed at inspiring residents to research their own family history and contribute to a new interactive Doncaster heritage website. The website will make information about the First World War and the KOYLI currently held in council archives more accessible. As well as being searchable, members of the public will also be able to upload their own information. 

The Doncaster Council bid is one of the latest successful bids that Focus Consultants has been involved in. Since it was founded 20 years ago, it has helped to secure more than £925 million of grant assistance for a range of projects and businesses across the UK and delivered more than £1.0 billion worth of projects and programmes – making it one of the most successful businesses of its kind in the country. 

It specialises in working with councils, arts and heritage organisations, leisure complexes, religious and secular groups, and tourism outlets to put together innovative bids for funding packages for development projects. 

Ros Jones, Mayor of Doncaster, said: "This is fantastic news for people in Doncaster and we are extremely grateful to the Heritage Lottery Fund for this generous investment. Doncaster has a rich heritage and it will be interesting to see what we can add to the understanding of it over the course of the five years.”

Fiona Spiers, Head of Heritage Lottery Fund Yorkshire and the Humber, said the HLF was delighted to announce support for the project. 

“Doncaster Museum holds some fascinating archives exploring the history of the conflict on the Home and Western Fronts - from rationing and zeppelin raids, to family memories and life in a battalion,” she said. “This project will enable the community to access them, bring stories to life and contribute to a digital legacy that will preserve a unique insight into the Doncastrian memory of the First World War for generations to come." 

Visit www.focus-consultants.co.uk

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