First visitor numbers revealed for new Roman museum

More than 16,000 visitors have been to Leicester's new £16.8m Roman museum since it opened its doors in the summer, according to latest figures.

Leicester City Council unveiled the Jewry Wall Museum in July following a four-year revamp of an older museum in the former Vaughan College building in St Nicholas Circle.

The authority said there were 16,215 visitors between its opening and November 30.

Leicester mayor Sir Peter Soulsby told the BBC he thought the new attraction was "building up nicely".

Soulsby said the museum was on course to reach its visitor target of 31,578 by the end of March.

The latest numbers show 11,495 tickets were purchased and 4,720 people went to the museum's cafe and shop, which do not require admission to visit.

The museum stands next to the landmark Jewry Wall itself, the remains of a bathhouse that served the old Roman city, known as Ratae, from about AD160.

Work on the creation of the new museum began in 2021, but was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic and the original contractor going bust.

Soulsby said, despite the setbacks, he was happy to see the museum progressing now it was open.

"I'm very happy with how it's going so far," Soulsby said. "The feedback I am getting is universally good.

"It has been a long project to get off the ground, but it is showing its value.

"What the museum is achieving is that it is a great place to go in its own right, but it then draws people to the city, who then shop and eat in other businesses."

However, Green Party city councillor Patrick Kitterick said he had concerns about the venue's long-term viability.

"It's a great facility and the staff are lovely but there are two things that undercut the business model.

"The first is that the best bit of it, the Jewry Wall, is something anyone can see for free from the street.

"Secondly, it's located in a place where most of the people in the area are going past it to get into or out of town.

"My concern is the first year's visitor numbers are the best we are likely to see and that in the future we are going to have to rethink what we do with the building."

Follow BBC Leicester on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected] or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.