Multi-million-pound plan to give sea dragon new home

The Rutland sea dragon is close to being signed over to the county's care to be displayed as part of a £6m project.

In 2021, the discovery of an ancient ichthyosaur fossil buried beneath Rutland Water made headlines around the world.

Rutland County Council wants to make the 180-million-year-old marine reptile the centrepiece of an expanded Rutland County Museum.

The authority is set to discuss financing the plan at a budget meeting on Thursday, while council leader Gale Waller told a committee meeting last week that Anglian Water was "very close" to signing over the skeleton.

While the ultimate goal is for the fossil to be housed physically at the museum in Oakham, the initial plan is to digitise both the ichthyosaur and a Roman mosaic found in Ketton so they can be displayed.

Speaking about the project at February's scrutiny committee meeting, Waller said: "We haven't started digitisation of the sea monster yet.

"We can't do this until it is part of the museum. It's currently owned by Anglian Water.

"Until they sign the agreement we can't start the work. It's due to be signed any day now."

Funding for the cultural centre scheme is included in the council's 2026/27 budget, which is set to be debated and voted on tonight.

It would come from the council's three-year capital plan, which is worth more than £54m.

The £6m cultural centre scheme includes £2m in levelling up funding previously awarded to the council from the government to create the digital visitor experience.

If the budget proposal is agreed, it will see the council's local history collection and large objects relocated to an extended Rutland County Museum.

The work to the Catmos Street building would create a multi-use space, cafe, shop and dedicated gallery to house the 10m ichthyosaur specimen, thought to be the biggest and most complete skeleton of its kind found to date in the UK.

The authority found out in September last year that a £4.9m bid for National Lottery funding had failed, but the plan to bring the fossil to Rutland remains in place – and a future bid for lottery funds has not been ruled out.

A spokesperson for Anglian Water said: "We've been working closely with local partners on the excavation, conservation and preservation of this remarkable find.

"The ultimate goal is to bring the Rutland sea dragon home to Rutland, so we can share this really exciting specimen with the wider public."

By Dan Martin, Leicester political reporter

The arrival of the sea dragon at Rutland County Museum will grab the headlines, but the aquatic monster is only part of the story.

The proposed £6m investment by the council is part of a plan to boost Rutland's wider appeal to tourists by developing the museum as a cultural centre.

Tourism remains big business in England's smallest county, with figures showing there were about 1.5m visitors to Rutland in 2024, generating nearly £175m to the local economy.

The council hopes its plan will drive up those numbers and open the door to bidding for external funds in the future.

Follow BBC Leicester on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.