Portview and National Museums NI establish heritage partnership

By the end of 2021, Portview and National Museums NI had established a formal working partnership focused on the heritage and future of the former Strand Spinning Mill.

A memorandum of understanding set out a shared commitment to explore both temporary and longer-term uses for the site. National Museums NI agreed to share expertise in areas including museum practice, conservation, research, care and interpretation of the mill and its heritage.

The two organisations also agreed to explore ways of increasing public access to their collections and stories, identify future funding opportunities and collaborate on projects, exhibitions and events where appropriate.

The partnership was significant because it connected Portview’s regeneration plans with specialist museum knowledge. Rather than treating the industrial history of Strand Spinning Mill as a backdrop, the intention was to use that history as part of the experience and future identity of the site.

This collaboration helped provide the foundation for later heritage activity at Portview, including What’s the Story?, Spinning Memories and the development of Banana Block as a public-facing cultural and events space.

It also established an approach that remains relevant today: heritage can be protected most effectively when people are given new reasons to engage with it.